Category Archives: Food & Agriculture

MIE, Nov. 22 – The line of hand-made accessories featuring tea leaves made by a 17-year-old daughter of a tea farmer in Yokkaichi City, Mie Prefecture, is drawing attention. The daughter, Run Shimizu, is in her second year of high school in Japan. She uses premium kabusecha tea leaves to make her original eye-catching accessories made of transparent resin with floating tea leave and sold more than 60 pieces since April. All her items, including earrings, hairpins, and rings, are sold with a note of the name of the tea variety she used, such as “Sae Akari” or “Sofu.” Shimizu uses tea leaves from her parents’ tea company, Marushige Shimizu … Continue reading →

OKINAWA, Nov. 23 — Japan’s new southernmost winery was set up in the village of Onna in Okinawa Prefecture. Production of grapes is extremely low in Okinawa where there are a lot of hot days, but agriculture production corporation Okinawa Budou cultivates a native grape variety that colors well even under warm climate conditions in order to produce wine. It had been outsourcing wine making but obtained a production license and started producing wine by itself. It hopes the product will take root like beer and awamori distilled liquor as Okinawa’s new alcoholic beverage. Koji Nakata, 58, head of Okinawa Budou, and his wife Tomoko, 48, grows Ryukyu-ganebu, a wild … Continue reading →

TOKYO, Nov. 14 – On November 13, 2023, the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (ZEN-NOH) completed the lineup of its Nippon Yell brand gummy candies made with fruits unique to each of all 47 prefectures in Japan. In just over two years, it released a total of 63 kinds, drawing consumers’ attention as the products that offer the fun of choosing. In September 2021, ZEN-NOH released the first line of Nippon Yell Gummy Candies, 28 kinds featuring 21 prefectures. Since then, the all-Japan gummy series sold more than 20 million bags by September this year. On November 13, ZEN-NOH released “Nippon Yell Gummy made of Mio Shizuku Strawberry from … Continue reading →

TOKUSHIMA/SAITAMA, Nov. 11 － Shinkame, junmai pure rice sake made from 100 percent Awayamadanishiki brand rice produced in Tokushima Prefecture, collaborated with the special effects film Gamera The Giant Monster in commemoration of the release of a new series. The collaboration version of Shinkame, meaning holy turtle, comes in a bottle with a limited edition label design in which the logo of a turtle is replaced with Gamera. Shinkame is produced by Shinkame Brewery in Saitama Prefecture using rice cultivated in an area covered by JA Awashi, a local farm coop in Awa, Tokushima Prefecture, strictly selected based on soil quality. The limited edition is marketed under the name GAMERA … Continue reading →

TOKYO, Nov. 4 – “Kei Truck Market” was held in Tokyo on November 3, 2023, to sell local products on the beds of Japanese mini trucks dubbed keitora in Japanese. Farmers and several keitora ichi (kei truck market) associations gathered at the venue with more than 50 mini trucks carrying processed products and seasonal agricultural produce, and the venue was full of people enjoying shopping. The event was part of the Japan Mobility Show, an exhibition of the latest automotive technology at the Tokyo Big Sight in Koto Ward, Tokyo. One of the most popular attractions at the market was an all-you-can-pack sale of green peppers by a truck that … Continue reading →