MIYAZAKI and SAITAMA, Apr. 22 – Japanese mushrooms, especially log-grown shiitake, are gaining popularity overseas. Due to the trend toward healthy living, washoku Japanese cuisine is becoming more popular worldwide, making log-grown shiitake mushrooms much liked for their taste, flavor, and texture. The demand for vegans who only eat vegetables is also expected to grow. The Japan Special Forest Product Promotion Association supports research into overseas markets and product development using Japan’s subsidy program.
According to the statistics from the Ministry of Finance of Japan, the export of mushrooms, including dried shiitake mushrooms, hovered at around 1 to 1.1 billion yen in the recent three years from 2021 to 2024, the period when comparable data are available; the top three export destinations in 2024 were Hong Kong, the U.S., and Taiwan; and there will be demand in Thailand and other Southeast Asian countries. According to Iiboshi Shoten Ltd., a log-grown shiitake mushroom wholesaler based in Hyuga City, Miyazaki Prefecture, the market potential is higher with the Japanese and high-end restaurants with a focus on good ingredients than in the retail market, where the products are compared to low-priced sawdust-grown shiitake mushrooms from China.
Let’s look at a case where Japanese log-grown mushrooms made a big hit in Taiwan, though they were not a familiar ingredient for local consumers. A Taiwanese restaurant chain, Taiwan Royal Host, served hamburgers and steaks cooked with log-grown shiitake from Miyazaki Prefecture at its 11 restaurants for a month from mid-January this year. For gifts, it also sold “Thick-meat Donko Shiitake Mushrooms” in wooden and paper boxes. These were planned by Sato Trade Partner Japan Co., Ltd., a trading company headquartered in Kasukabe City, Saitama Prefecture, and based in Japan and Taiwan. They advertised the gift products on their official website and social networking sites and sold 1,714 boxes for approximately 5 million yen.
In their customer survey, approximately 99% of 87 respondents were satisfied. The gift products were well praised for their taste, flavor, and texture, and there was a comment like “it will make a nice gift.” More than half of the respondents named “quality” when asked about the element they consider when purchasing. Sato Trading President Hidenori Sasago believes that traceability (a system for tracking production and distribution history) is the key.
Sugimoto Co., Ltd. (Takachiho Town, Miyazaki Prefecture) is an established Japanese exporter of dried shiitake mushrooms to countries and regions worldwide, including Europe, the United States, and Asia. The company held an event at a popular restaurant in New York, featuring gyoza dumplings, sushi, ramen noodles, and other dishes cooked with shiitake and other mushrooms from Japan. The event was successful, and the company president, Kazuhide Sugimoto, analyzed that introducing Japanese cuisine in a modern twist as “neo-washoku” and appealing unique flavors and textures to vegans were effective. These neo-washoku dishes will be introduced at the Osaka Expo.
Sushi with premium Hana Donko shiitake mushrooms served at a restaurant in New York (Photo provided by Sugimoto Co., Ltd.)