In November 2024, the KANKITSU LABO US team visited Ehime Prefecture, Japan. We'll take you on a journey through this region, renowned as a citrus wonderland, and share what we learned about citrus from the farmers, producers, and chefs we met.
Ehime Prefecture: A Treasure Trove of Agricultural and Marine Products
Blessed with a warm climate and rich natural environment, Ehime Prefecture cultivates a wide variety of agricultural products. Its citrus fruit production is particularly famous throughout Japan, with various varieties such as Iyokan, Sumo, Amanatsu and Beni Madonna being grown.
While Ehime is renowned for its citrus fruits, it boasts many other attractive ingredients. They are blessed with rich fishing grounds, including the Seto Inland Sea and the Uwa Sea, and have one of the highest catches of sea bream in Japan. Many local dishes use sea bream, and these are widely loved by the people of Ehime. Other famous products include Jakoten (small fish ground and fried with their bones), Himekoji Chicken (a brand chicken developed in Ehime, known for its good meat quality, juiciness, and deliciousness), and Goshiki Somen (a specialty of Ehime: five-colored somen noodles (white, yellow, green, red, and purple) that are beautiful to look at and popular as gifts and souvenirs). A wide variety of vegetables also grow in Ehime. The warm climate and fertile soil, ideal for citrus fruits, also produce flavorful vegetables.
Trying Ehime Prefecture’s Local Kankitsu, Vegetables, and Seafood
Feeling hungry after reading about all the delicious food in Ehime? We visited the Setonaikai Kyo Market in Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture, where we saw and bought many different kinds of local Ehime products. The market is filled with a wide variety of carefully selected specialty goods, seafood, and souvenirs from all over Ehime, making it a fun place to explore. We'll introduce the dishes we made using the ingredients we bought at the Setonaikai Kyo Market in a later post. Stay tuned!
Citrus Wonderland - Ehime
Since we are KANKITSU LABO, we had to explore Ehime Prefecture’s citrus further! We visited "Ehime's Dining Table 1970," a place where you can enjoy 20 different kinds of citrus juice. Did you know about the urban legend in Ehime that says "citrus juice comes out of the faucet"? "Ehime's Dining Table 1970" is where you can actually experience this legend. They have 20 different faucets, and you can taste 100% straight juice made from Ehime-grown citrus fruits.
Our team tried all 20 kinds of juice! Each had a surprisingly different taste, and while they were all delicious on their own, we kept coming up with pairing ideas, which was very exciting. The flavor report of the citrus juice will be released later! We will explain the characteristics and taste of each citrus fruit in detail from the unique perspective of KANKITSU LABO.
Even though Ehime Prefecture is the “Citrus Wonderland,” in recent years, citrus farmers have faced serious problems such as aging and a shortage of successors. Amidst this situation, 10FACTORY has emerged. With a strong desire to "connect the citrus industry to the next generation," they are continuing to take on new challenges.
10FACTORY focuses on citrus fruits that are misshapen or have blemishes, so-called "non-standard" citrus fruits. They purchase these citrus fruits, which, despite having no quality problems, are not distributed in the market, from farmers at high prices. The non-standard citrus fruits collected in this way undergo their "magic" and are reborn into various products such as citrus juice, ice cream, alcohol, and cookies. Their efforts not only contribute to increasing farmers' income but also provide consumers with new ways to enjoy citrus fruits and showcase new attractions in Ehime Prefecture. It can be said that this is a challenge with three benefits.
During this visit, we tasted their ice creams, cookies, chocolates, and cocktails. Tune in for the flavor report to be released later!
