Let's go Nanporo, enjoy the vegetables!! The team "Nouen" was formed by young people from Nanporo town.

Nouen is a team made up of young people in their 20s and 30s from various walks of life, including farmers living in Minamihoro Town, Hokkaido, town hall staff, and cram school teachers.

Image courtesy of Nozaru

Our mission is to make children growing up in Minamihoro Town realize that agriculture is cool and fun, and we are taking on new challenges such as providing agricultural experiences and developing processed products, centering around the Yasai festival held in Minamihoro Town in the summer.

"Yasai" T-shirt Image provided by Nozaru

Nozaru has been around for six years. "A teacher from the town of Nanporo, who had been teaching me judo since I was little, asked me if I could do something interesting in the town. I discussed it with some friends who I often get together for drinks, and we were all thinking about how we wanted to run an organization that transcends the boundaries of the various jurisdictions, such as the agricultural cooperative youth division, the Nanporo town youth group, the town hall, and the agricultural cooperative. So we decided to give it a try and Nozaru was founded." The activities that Nozaru undertakes are all aimed at making Nanporo Town as fun, delicious, and interesting as possible. Let's take a closer look at what Nozaru is up to.

"Yasai Festival" is a festival where you can enjoy your hometown Nanporo Town to the fullest.

The first activity that Nozaru was formed in 2016 was a festival called "Yasai Festival." In addition to a large-scale sale of first-class vegetables that are not often available in the town, such as pure white tomatoes and tomatoes produced in Nanporo, the festival is packed with programs that allow people of all ages to enjoy agriculture from various angles, including an exhibition of the latest tractors, tractor test drives, and tractor tug-of-war.

Flyer for the 4th Nosai Festival Image provided by Nozaru

The Nomatsuri has been held for four years since 2016, with the number of visitors increasing from about 500 people the first time, to double the number from the second year, reaching about 4,000 people in the fourth year. When a survey of visitors was conducted in the fourth year, it was discovered that some visitors had come from Engaru.

The 4th Nomatsuri Festival in 2019. Photo courtesy of Nozaru.

What was the inspiration behind this wild festival that is loved by people both within and outside the town? "When we were little, there was a festival called the Nanporo Rice Festival. It had interesting programs such as a muddy cycle race, where participants cycled across a narrow plank laid over the rice paddies for a cash prize, and it was a really fun festival that drew a lot of people. We thought it would be good to have a fun festival like that in the town, and we wanted people to be able to eat first-class vegetables and learn about the appeal of farming, so we started a festival called Nomatsuri." Nozaru was originally formed by eight young farmers, but after two or three years of activity, town hall staff, cram school instructors, and other farmers all started saying, "I want to do this too," and "I want to do this too," and they started to join. Friends who share the desire to spread the appeal of agriculture and the town have come together to create an interesting movement in the town.

Image courtesy of Nozaru

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, the event was scaled down and limited to local residents, with a drive-through vegetable sales system. We are looking forward to seeing how the event will be held in 2022!

A light truck in a field?! A unique agricultural experience that will make fun memories in Nanporo Town

Nozaru's activities are not limited to holding festivals. They also engage in "food education" where people learn about the food of Nanporo through agricultural experiences. One day, an acquaintance whose child attends a nursery school in Sapporo approached him, asking if there was anything he could do, as nursery school activities had been reduced due to the coronavirus pandemic. "We were approached by a group that wanted us to bring their children to the nursery school because they couldn't travel to Minamihorocho. So we decided to load the fields with corn and cabbage that were about to be harvested onto a light truck and head to the site with the whole field! That's how we did what we called a 'mobile light truck field trip.' We had each child pick one stalk of corn from the light truck field, and we even cut up the cabbage with a knife, giving them the experience of harvesting, and it was a big hit." This video shows what happened at the time. The best thing about it is the smiles on the children's faces!

The "Mobile Light Truck Farm" initiative sparked calls from Minamihoro town, and children from local nursery schools and kindergartens are invited to the actual farm, where they can experience harvesting corn, cherry tomatoes, cabbage, etc., and ride tractors, among other experiential programs suited to the season and age. They have also been accepting students from Nanporo High School for agricultural experiences every year for the past 3-4 years. The program allows students to experience agriculture throughout the year, with rice planting in May, corn sowing in June, weeding and maintenance in July, harvesting in August, and setting up a stall at a local product fair.

Image courtesy of Nozaru

Besides their work on the farm, Nozaru is also involved in a variety of activities at various places, including kindergartens and high schools. What is their motivation behind their food education activities? "I hope that people will remember that there were adults doing things like this in Nanporo town, that that festival was fun, and that Nanporo town was a fun place. People tend to act through connections, don't they? Perhaps when today's children grow up, they will do the same kind of work to enliven Nanporo town. I hope that I can be a catalyst for that, so I make appearances in various places. Also, I think this is true for everyone, but most people only know how vegetables look when they are sold. I want people to know how they are grown and harvested, so I put a lot of effort into food education." The members of Nozaru, who are agricultural professionals, teach you how to harvest directly, harvest from the fields with your own hands, and eat the vegetables freshly picked. Through this experience, you will develop an appreciation and interest in the fun of farming and vegetables.

Use Yumepirika to make donuts and pancakes! Yumepirika rice flour is exceptionally sweet and delicious

In Minamihorocho, where rice farming is thriving, a variety of rice varieties are produced, including Hokkaido brand rice varieties "Yumepirika," "Nanatsuboshi," and "Oborozuki."

Yumepirika's Rice Flour was born from the idea that "We have poured our passion into growing this rice. Is there a way to make it even more enjoyable?" "Chef Oki of 'Sweet Recipe of Happiness,' one of the pastry chefs who produced the Shime Parfait, gave this rice flour a very positive review. He told me that due to the characteristics of the Yumepirika variety, this rice flour has an outstanding rice flavor and sweetness. That's how we decided to jointly develop donuts made with 100% Yumepirika rice flour. Because they're not fried, they're also safe for children to eat as a snack."

Rice flour donuts Image courtesy of Nozaru

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, we worked with Chef Oki to develop a pancake mix using Yumepirika rice flour as a follow-up to the donuts. The main ingredients, rice flour, sugar beet sugar, and buttermilk powder, are all from Hokkaido, making this a special product.

"Yumepirika Pancake Mix" made with Hokkaido rice flour

"When we deal with rice, we often hear about gluten-free products and the fact that there are quite a few children with wheat allergies. When we gave some pancake mix to students at Nanporo High School as a souvenir, one student was really happy and said, 'I have a wheat allergy so I can't usually eat pancakes, but I can eat these.' It made us really happy and we were really glad that we made them. We want people who suffer from wheat allergies to try them too." Unlike wheat flour, rice flour does not have gluten, so it is recommended to bake it in a small frying pan or use a mold. The gentle sweetness of rice, which you cannot get with wheat flour pancake mix, and the fluffy texture make this a hotcake that you will become addicted to!

We want people from all over Hokkaido, not just Nanporo Town, to enjoy the Nomatsuri and Nanporo Town.

In addition to the outdoor festivals, food education, and product development introduced in this article, Nozaru is involved in a wide range of activities, involving and being involved with many different people. We asked Shirochi about his ambitions for the future.

"While maintaining the basic events and activities, we are constantly thinking about how to make them more fun, and putting this into practice, so we are constantly upgrading them. It would be great if people from all over Hokkaido came to our event, Nanporo Town's Nomatsuri (Wild Festival)! It's always a challenge, and as I have children myself, I want to set an example by taking on new challenges. Also, I think there are many groups of young people who are working on revitalizing towns all over the country, so I would like to interact with them and get them to say, "Let's team up with all the young people, not just in Nanporo Town." I want to get rid of barriers and jurisdictions and share the fun things we do together. So my ambition is to conquer the whole prefecture, right? Haha." The Nozaru members are planning lots of interesting things. I'm looking forward to seeing what they do next!