Discover The Strawberry Kingdom of Tochigi

The world’s biggest strawberry-lovers

Fruit was once almost exclusively an imported luxury item in Japan. It was such an extravagance that few people could afford it. This aura of exclusivity has persisted through the ages, with fruit still seen somewhat of a special treat. Perhaps the most iconic fruit that fits this description is the strawberry. It is indispensable for topping the quintessential Japanese Christmas cake and Japan has so many varieties that fresh strawberries can be enjoyed at any time of year. Japan is said to have the highest consumption of fresh strawberries in the world, and there are apparently about 300 varieties of Japanese strawberries, accounting for more than half of all existing varieties in the world. This number continues to rise, with unique and novel varieties always emerging and ‘regional brands’ that represent particular parts of the country consistently being produced.

East vs West: Vying for Japan’s best strawberry

More beautiful, more delicious: the progression of Japanese strawberries never ceases. The evolution of Japanese strawberries has a history founded in the intense competition between growers in the eastern and western parts of Japan to create the best fruit. A few decades ago, the two mainstream varieties in Japan were the Toyonaka from Fukuoka (known as the ‘Champion of the West’) and the Nyoho from Tochigi (the ‘Champion of the East’).

When the Tochiotome, bigger and sweeter than the Nyoho, was created in Tochigi in 1996, it took the mantle as eastern Japan’s representative strawberry. It now competes with the new Amao variety from Fukuoka that more recently represents the west. Other stars have emerged from this east-west ‘battle’: one of these is the impressive new Skyberry variety from Tochigi. This premium strawberry is large and boasts a beautiful conical shape and a sublimely balanced sweetness with just the right amount of tartness.

Strawberry Kingdom Tochigi

The Tochiotome and Skyberry hail from Tochigi Prefecture in Japan’s Tohoku Region. Since 1968, Tochigi has been hailed as the ‘Strawberry Kingdom’ due to it being Japan’s number one producer of strawberries. The ‘kingdom’ has held this top spot for so many decades thanks not only to constant efforts to improve cultivation methods and its research on developing new varieties, but also on the various ways of enjoying strawberries that it promotes. One example of these is strawberry picking for the general public. This activity has become very popular with tourists, one that allows them to pick and eat as many strawberries as they like.

Take your pick!

The ‘Slow Life Resort Ichigo-no-sato Farm’ in Oyama City is a popular pick-it-yourself destination. Various fruits are grown in more than 160 greenhouses spread over the 14-hectare site, which also includes a café and restaurant, a BBQ house, and several stores selling many strawberry and other fruit-based products. It is very easy to spend an entire day here. The farm offers a 30 minute all-you-can-eat strawberry picking experience where visitors can savor both the Skyberry and Tochiotome varieties. Last year, over 140,000 people visited Ichigo-no-sato to do exactly that.

Peach season lasts from late June to early October. Visitors to the Ichigo-no-sato Farm can enjoy 40 minutes of all-you-can-eat Koki, Tosui, and Kawanakajima White Peach varieties. Meanwhile, you can pick, wash, and eat blueberries from late July and grapes from around mid-August right where they grow.

There is also a petting zoo with animals such as goats and donkeys — feeding them is very popular with children visiting the farm.

At the farm’s café, various sweets made from strawberries and other fruit such as mango and melon grown on the farm can be enjoyed. One of the most popular things to try is the strawberry shaved ice, made completely from frozen strawberries. This cooling taste of summer does not use one drop of water: it is all strawberry!

The most delicious strawberry is...

With a single strawberry sometimes fetching several hundred yen in the stores, the chance for all-you-can-eat Tochiotome and Skyberry strawberry attracts so many people during picking season, the line to get in can stretch for quite some way. Koichi Tochigi, the person in charge of strawberry cultivation at the Ichigo-no-sato Farm, says that he wants visitors to enjoy the deliciousness of the strawberries he grows in a casual manner.

“People can eat the strawberries they have picked themselves at a reasonable cost or enjoy the many sweets and desserts we have that incorporate them at the café. If they are really hungry, they can enjoy them and other local produce at the barbecue house. And, of course we have the strawberry jam and desserts that you can buy at the gift shop and take home as presents. I am always happy to see people having a day out enjoying our strawberries to the fullest!”

How can someone distinguish which strawberry is delicious? “The one that looks to you like it’s delicious!” Tochigi replies.

“I’ll explain what I mean by telling you about the best strawberry I ever tasted. It was about six in the morning and the beautiful sunlight was starting to peek into the greenhouse. I noticed it was shining upon a single, gleaming strawberry. I can still recall just how impressed I was with its taste as I devoured it, standing alone in the still of the greenhouse. Now, I am sure that if it had been the exact same strawberry in any other situation, I perhaps would not have been so impressed!”

“The taste of something can change depending on when and how you are eating it,” Tochigi continues. “You might buy strawberries at the supermarket that taste good. However, the strawberries you selected and picked yourself in the greenhouse can be exceptional. Of course, people are particular about taste, but we consider the experience to be an important part of how the fruit is enjoyed. You could say that the delight that fills you when eating strawberries is in the actual process of looking for the one that looks delicious.”

Everyone feels a rich sense of satisfaction when they eat delicious food; this sense of richness is enhanced further by the people the food is enjoyed with and the environment the food is savored in. Picking your own strawberries in a beautiful farm with close friends or family — a special experience that only adds to the feeling of indulgence when you bite into the fruit you have picked. Tochigi’s strawberries are a treat for special occasions that, like the enjoyment found when picking them yourself, live long as a sweet memory.