Shin Yoo-yeol, head of future growth at Lotte Group (center), and other executives pose at the opening ceremony for the office of Lotte's Singapore joint venture in May. (Lotte) Lotte Group said Tuesday it will unite its Korean and Japanese food businesses under a Singapore-based joint venture next month, turning a long-held vision of combining its two food operations into an overseas-focused reality.The new company, formed by Korea's Lotte Wellfood and Japan's confectionery arm, will oversee operations across Asia, with Shin Yoo-yeol, the eldest son of Chairman Shin Dong-bin and head of the group's future growth division, at the helm of the joint venture's board.The new entity will unify management, manufacturing, sales and logistics operations, while coordinating procurement, marketing and research to improve efficiency and accelerate product launches. It has received board approval and regulatory clearance, the group noted.The move stands as one of the clearest signs yet of Shin Dong-bin's long-running "One Lotte" strategy, aimed at integrating businesses that have often operated separately despite sharing the same brand.As domestic demand matures, Lotte is leaning more heavily on overseas operations to drive growth. Lotte Wellfood posted a 14.4 percent increase in international revenue last year to 1.2 trillion won ($775 million), while the Japanese business recorded about 900 billion won in overseas sales."The venture gives us greater scale and coordination across Asia, and will help us build global brands and expand into new markets," a Lotte official said.The food venture is the latest move in Lotte's push to deepen ties between its Korean and Japanese operations, following last year's Lotte Hotels Japan launch and expanded cooperation in biotechnology and venture investments.