★ [2023 Rice] Hiroshi Omori's naturally grown Isehikari rice, sun-dried

[Harvested in 2023] Natural Isehikari rice from Hiroshi Omori of Kumamoto Prefecture, sun-dried

 "I want to create something that I think is good and have confidence in it."

Mr. Omori is not originally from a farming family, but is a newcomer to the farming world. Prior to that, he ran his own import goods store for nine years, selling products made by other people.

However, in 2010, when I was 38 years old, I asked myself, "What do I really want to do?"
The answer that came to me was the pure desire to be a farmer.

"My life up until now has been about selling things made by other people.
But from now on, I truly wanted to sell the things I made with confidence."

When I thought about what to make, the first thing that came to mind was my favorite food, rice.

However, because rice requires a large investment in equipment, I was met with strong opposition from those around me, who said that "it's not something a new farmer can do."
"But I didn't think that was important. I started making things that I thought were good and was confident in them."

After a year of training in organic farming, I found my current rice fields in Minamiaso village in 2012. Surrounded by the lush mountains of Aso, it is a wonderful space where you can feel at ease just by being there.

Isehikari grown with spring water

The water for the rice fields comes from a spring that gushes forth right in front of the villagers. Minamiaso Village is so rich in water that it is called the "hometown of water." There are 11 named water sources alone, and even smaller, unnamed water sources in each district.

This mineral water is completely free of domestic wastewater and can be drunk straight from the bottle.

"Minamiaso is also my mother's hometown, and since I started farming I've been looking for a rice field that fits my criteria. I was really happy when I found this rice field."

Surfing has been a hobby of Omori since he was young. As a result, he has always thought about the global environment. So, when he started farming, it was natural for him not to use pesticides.

He also met Kazuko Takashima, a pioneer in natural farming in Minamiaso, and began to seriously pursue natural farming, which does not use any pesticides or fertilizers at all .

Commitment to sun drying

Sun-drying is now a rare sight. Drying with a dryer is more common, but "we can continue doing this because we have customers who look forward to sun-dried rice."
Whereas mechanical drying takes place overnight, this method uses the power of the sun and wind to dry the leather over a period of one to two weeks, depending on the weather.

God's Rice

Ise Hikari is a type of rice that originated in the Kanda area of ​​Ise Shrine.
At Ise Shrine, the Kanname Festival is held from October 15th to 25th. This is an event in which the first rice harvested that year is offered to the gods to give thanks. 

The rice offered to the gods at this Kanname-sai festival is called sacred rice, and for many years "Koshihikari" rice was offered. 

However, in 1989, a typhoon hit the Ise region and all of the Koshihikari rice in Kanda was destroyed. Among them, there were only two stalks that stood upright, thick and sturdy. 

It looked different from the Koshihikari varieties we had seen up until then, so we investigated it further and found out that it was a new variety. This would later become "Isehikari."

For many years afterwards, Ise Hikari was considered sacred rice and was kept secret from the temple. And at the Kanname-sai festival, Isehikari rice came to be offered to the gods instead of Koshihikari rice. Ise Hikari is truly a miracle rice, a product of the typhoon damage. Isn't this truly "rice given by God"?