Authentic Wakayama Sake by Nakano BC

Japan’s food-related exports and the number of Japanese restaurants overseas have been experiencing record growth, with exports reaching JPY 1.45 trillion last year and the number of restaurants tripling over the past decade. If we focus specifically on alcoholic beverage exports, this figure has increased fivefold in the same period, surpassing JPY 115 billion, with strong growth seen in markets like the U.S., South Korea, and Europe. How do you explain this continued rise in Japanese food exports, and what business opportunities does this present for your company to sell products overseas?

We’ve been expanding our exports since 2012. I’ve visited the U.S., Hong Kong, and other regions, and we've seen a significant rise in restaurants offering various types of Japanese cuisine, or washoku. After UNESCO recognized washoku as an intangible cultural heritage, the number of specialized restaurants—focused on dishes like sushi or ramen—has grown considerably.

In the past, for example, before the UNESCO designation, if I went to the U.S., the fish available didn’t taste good. However, now, fish is often sent directly from Japan, and in some cases, the fish served at these restaurants may even be fresher than what’s available in Japan. The same is true for Vietnam and Thailand, where distribution systems have become highly efficient. This means that food harvested in the morning can be on a plate by evening, providing the same high-quality ingredients found in Japan, but now available worldwide.

The increase in trading companies, such as JFC, has also played a role, and another significant factor is the government’s focus on promoting these exports. Naturally, efforts from Japanese companies have also contributed to this growth. These factors combined have allowed people around the world to recognize and appreciate the authentic taste of Japanese cuisine. This is the current landscape.

Ten years ago, the president of a company in Seattle reached out to me, asking for someone to make sushi in the U.S. Back then, Japanese food wasn’t widely known, so we had to send Japanese chefs abroad to prepare it. But today, there’s much greater recognition and understanding of washoku, so it’s no longer necessary for a Japanese person to cook it. This shift has made it easier to operate Japanese restaurants than it was in the past.

Sushi is now appreciated not only for its omakase course but also for its health benefits. Furthermore, the bQb-Cert certification is expanding to include a broader range of restaurant types, such as those specializing in ramen or onigiri. A year and a half ago, an omelet rice restaurant opened in France, which further demonstrates how food cultures similar to those in daily Japanese life are gaining global popularity. I believe this trend has also contributed to the growing number of Japanese restaurants abroad.

When it comes to sake abroad, many people still view it as something that can only be enjoyed with Japanese food. With the growing awareness of Japanese culture and more people visiting Japan, do you see an opportunity to educate people that sake can be paired with other dishes and can serve as an alternative to wine, for example?

Yes, and in places like Paris, the share of sake consumption is increasing. Although it is still enjoyed by a minority, sake is becoming more popular in Paris. I believe it’s important to match sake with local cuisine abroad. For example, we have a significant export of umeshu, or plum liqueur, which pairs well with many different types of local food. Currently, washoku is still often viewed as cuisine for special occasions, and if sake is only consumed at washoku restaurants, its volume will remain limited. Therefore, it’s crucial to encourage more people to incorporate sake into their daily lives.

We’ve been participating in several contests to promote sake and its versatility. For example, there’s the Milano Sake Challenge, which focuses on pairing sake with pizza, and in France, there’s a contest called Kura Master, dedicated to shochu and umeshu. We’ve also worked with a renowned cheese expert, whose name I can’t recall, who paired our Chokyu 1997 with cheese. This pairing received a lot of praise, and we were honored with a special award for it.

Are you seeing more non-Japanese sommeliers who are knowledgeable enough about Japanese nihonshu to recommend it to customers and explain how it pairs with certain dishes?

Absolutely. In places like Paris, we’re seeing an increase in sake consumption. While it’s still a niche market, the popularity of sake in Paris is definitely growing. I believe it’s important to focus on pairing sake with local, regional dishes abroad. For example, umeshu is a popular export and pairs well with a variety of local cuisines.

Currently, washoku (traditional Japanese cuisine) is still often seen as something reserved for special occasions. If sake remains something enjoyed only in Japanese restaurants, its consumption will remain limited. That’s why it’s so important to integrate sake more fully into everyday life and introduce it to a wider audience.

We participate in several competitions to help promote sake and its diversity. For example, there is the Milano Sake Challenge, which focuses on pairing sake with pizza, and Kura Master in France, which specializes in shochu and umeshu. While there are various international competitions dedicated to Japanese alcoholic beverages, Kura Master places particular emphasis on the harmony between food and drink—a concept deeply rooted in French culinary tradition.

This year, for the first time, Kura Master introduced a new special award: the Alliance Gastronomique Award, which recognizes excellence in sake and food pairings. The award was presented to an aged sake that best complemented the flavor of a selected cheese, chosen by Bernard Mure-Ravaud, a holder of the prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France (M.O.F.) title.

While Japan’s population is declining, the number of inbound tourists is on the rise, reaching 37 million last year and an estimated 40 million this year. The government has set a target of 60 million by the end of the decade. Many of these tourists are taking advantage of their time in Japan, along with the weak yen, to explore and sample unique Japanese food and drinks. Targeting these travelers has been a key focus for your company. You offer brewery tours, sell gift packs in stores, and provide opportunities for tourists to learn about the sake brewing process, something they might not be familiar with. Can you tell us more about the strategies you’re using to raise brand awareness and attract more inbound tourists?

Before COVID, our brewery welcomed about 40,000 visitors per year, with roughly 30,000 of them being foreign tourists. Naturally, this dropped to zero during the pandemic, but since then, the number of visitors has been steadily increasing, reaching about 15,000 to 20,000 annually. Although the number of foreign visitors has not fully recovered yet, we are seeing positive momentum.

We export to 30 countries, primarily in Asia, with China and Hong Kong being our top markets. We export sake, gin, and umeshu, with the latter being our main focus. This is because Wakayama, where we’re based, is famous for its plums. In fact, we hold about 70% of Japan’s entire plum harvest. This is something we take great pride in, and we’re committed to sharing these plums with the world. By selling our plum products internationally, we also hope to inspire people to visit Japan and tour our brewery, creating a strong connection between our products and our heritage. This is the ideal situation for us.

We also have a Japanese garden that spans about 45,000 square meters, allowing visitors to enjoy the beautiful scenery. In addition to the garden, they can experience the process of pickling plums, which is a unique activity not available for sake. This experience is seasonal, running from June to early July, and during this period, plums are scattered all over our company grounds, filling the air with a delightful fragrance.

We strive to offer authentic experiences like this, hoping that visitors will learn how to pickle plums and, when they return home, try it themselves. The experience lasts between 30 to 60 minutes, and participants can take home some plums to try pickling on their own. I’m confident that they will want to enjoy our umeshu again when they return to their own countries.

Additionally, we have a regional partnership with Yuasa Shoyu and Kuroshio Market. Through this collaboration, we are working with tour companies to attract visitors not only to our own companies but also to Kainan and the broader Wakayama area.

A challenge with using locally sourced ingredients in Japan is the declining and aging population. The number of farmers is decreasing, and the average age of farmers is over 65, which is leading to some production issues. How are you addressing this challenge, and what is it about this region that makes its plums so unique?

Regarding the type of plums we use, we primarily use nanko plums, which are larger than other varieties. They are closer to sumomo, a type of peach, and provide a fruitier taste. Previously, we used kojiro plums, which gained popularity during the dried plum health boom. However, these days, we use 100% nanko plums because they are plumper and fruitier. Unfortunately, last year, we experienced a poor harvest, with only about half of the plums being harvested, and in some cases, as low as 30% for certain farmers. This meant we could only purchase half of what we needed, highlighting the urgent need to support stable production from farmers. As a result, we’re increasing our efforts to share information and support them more effectively.

I’ve heard that some farmers have children who are taking over the farms, which is encouraging news. However, there are still many farmers with no successors, leading them to abandon their farms, which is a significant issue. This is a major challenge not only for plum farmers but for agriculture in Japan as a whole. The plum harvest season runs from June to early July, and there’s been growing movement to bring in foreign workers to help with this high season, as older farmers are unable to manage the entire harvest themselves. To maintain production levels, we must do whatever we can, including hiring foreign workers.

As for the production leaders at our company, the leader of the sake division is 55 years old, and the leader of the umeshu division is 50. Both are aging, so we are shifting from an individual leadership model to a more organizational approach. In the past, Japanese work culture relied on employees learning by observing and doing, rather than receiving direct instruction or training. However, we are trying to change that to ensure knowledge is transferred from older workers to the younger generation, so they can take over the responsibilities. We’re also working to develop more versatile employees who can perform a wider range of tasks, rather than being specialized in one area. These efforts are all aimed at increasing production volume and ensuring sustainability in the long term.

In addition to using these local plums for food and beverages, they can also be utilized in other areas, such as functional ingredients for cosmetics and supplements. Your food and research science division has made notable achievements, including your persimmon powder and plum pearls granular products. How are you able to translate the research from this division into commercially available products, and what do you see as the next steps in this area?

Our main production in Wakayama focuses on plums, persimmons, oranges, local peppercorns known as sansho, and a unique variety of orange called hassaku. I believe it’s important to use locally sourced raw materials, and we aim to turn these into products that can contribute to society. For instance, plum extract has been shown to improve blood circulation, which makes it particularly popular among people with high blood pressure. It takes about 1 kg of plums to extract only 20 grams of this substance, and while it’s very sour, it has been used as a medicine in the past and is still a common homemade remedy in rural areas.

While the plum extract is beneficial for health, its taste is not very appealing, so we had to find a way to make it more palatable. Initially, we created a capsule product, but now we have developed UMESHINJYU which use plum fibers—a byproduct of our large plum harvest. This product addresses both consumer needs and our business objectives, which is why we developed UMESHINJYU. Moving forward, we will continue to enhance our technology to better meet the needs of the aging population, as Japan’s population continues to age. Our goal is to support their health with products that cater to these needs.

Functional foods can be sold directly to consumers or used in other applications. Is your business primarily B2B or B2C, and how do you envision expanding its range of uses and applications?

We have not yet achieved significant B2B distribution. Currently, 90% of our business is B2C, and 10% is B2B. In Japan, there is a growing demand for supplements that use extracts, so we are working to expand our B2B presence by partnering with other companies to supply our natural ingredients. While we are still relatively weak in the B2B sector, we are actively exploring new partnerships. We believe that we are the leading company in Wakayama in terms of plum extract production, volume, and inventory, and we plan to promote our brand to increase global recognition of Wakayama plums.

I believe Choya has firmly established itself as the world leader in umeshu, and their presence is widespread globally. While we do not have the capacity to produce at their scale, we aim to spread our unique umeshu techniques and distinct flavor to the world, along with our plum extract. Additionally, we produce plum juice and supply B2B raw materials to major beverage manufacturers for their summer beverages.

We hope to expand these activities and products outside Japan, but we are currently facing a logistics bottleneck due to the unsustainability of transporting products in large bins. As a solution, we are considering packaging locally, and we are actively seeking a company in Vietnam to handle the packaging. We will continue gathering information and exploring opportunities to bring our plums to the global market.

Speaking of bringing your plums to the world, you mentioned that you’ve been actively expanding overseas since 2012. What is your strategy for entering new markets and increasing your brand awareness?

Exports to China have been decreasing, and last year’s export volume dropped, which has impacted our business. To address this, we are sending staff to China to manage the situation. At the same time, we are focusing on the ASEAN region, as I believe that areas with a tradition of plum cultivation have a natural affinity for these products. We are concentrating our efforts in this region, and we’ve already found some customers in Laos who are handling a significant amount of our umeshu and sake. We continue to search for reliable customers and partners.

We also have a promotional project targeting the French market, which is supported by the local Wakayama government to promote umeshu and secure geographical indication (GI) certification. There are 33 companies participating in this initiative, and this year, we plan to expand the project to Great Britain. During my visit to France last year, I observed significant growth in the market. Although the initial volume was small, the increase was still about five times larger than before. We aim to continue these efforts to raise awareness of our product in different markets.

As for future expansion, we currently offer a lineup of around 30 umeshu products, but we are tailoring this lineup based on country or region. In the future, we plan to customize our products to suit local taste preferences and pair them with the local cuisine of each market.

Imagine we return to interview you again on your last day as the president of the company. What personal goal or ambition would you like to have accomplished by that time?

Nakano BC is celebrating its 93rd anniversary, so in seven years, we will reach our 100th anniversary, a milestone that began with my grandfather, followed by my father, and now myself. By the time we reach that centennial milestone, I will be 57, and I hope to further expand the global availability of Wakayama plums and umeshu through local production and packaging. I aim for recognition of our products to continue growing in the years leading up to this anniversary. Of course, Nakano BC cannot achieve this alone. We will need support from the government, and other partners, and we plan to collaborate with all of them to reach this goal.

That’s the first step, but before I die, I have a personal ambition to make Wakayama the number one prefecture in Japan. After graduating from high school, I spent ten years living in Tokyo, during which time I realized that Wakayama was not well known across the country. However, Wakayama has incredible attractions, excellent food, and unique qualities, and I believe plums can be one of the tools to help bring more attention to this region. I’m determined to continue working toward this goal.

For more information, please visit their website at: https://www.nakano-group.co.jp/tour/sakagura/about/en