Tsukudani and hot rice: Still a go-to meal in Japan centuries after its creation
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Japan Forward
2 hours ago
- Japan Forward
Historic Crested Ibis Release Set for June 2026 in Ishikawa
このページを 日本語 で読む The city of Hakui, located on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, has been selected as a release site for the crested ibis ( toki ). The toki is a Special Natural Monument designated by the Japanese government. On January 1, 2024, the Noto Peninsula was struck by a powerful earthquake that claimed 625 lives, including disaster-related deaths. Residents in the affected region have long awaited the return of these iconic birds to Noto's skies — a symbol of recovery and hope. On July 16, a council made up of four cities, five towns, and the prefectural government met in a conference room at Noto Airport in Wajima City. They decided to release the ibises in the Minamigata district of Hakui, a city near Kanazawa. This will be the first time crested ibises are released into the wild on Japan's mainland. Ishikawa was the last place on Honshu (Japan's main island) where wild ibises were seen. Once common throughout Japan, their population declined sharply due to pesticide use and environmental degradation. In 1981, the government captured the last five wild ibises in Ishikawa and moved them to Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture for breeding. In 2003, the final Japanese-born ibis died, rendering the species extinct in Japan. Since then, birds gifted from China have been bred in captivity and released into the wild. The population has since grown to about 580 individuals. To establish a self-sustaining population outside Sado, the national government began searching for new release sites. Ishikawa volunteered. With support from local farmers, the prefecture started building feeding habitats by increasing populations of loaches, pond snails, and other prey species. These efforts were recognized, and in February of this year, Noto was officially chosen as a new release site. A sign marking the crested ibis release model district, created by local high school students, in Hakui City, Ishikawa Prefecture. (©JAPAN Forward by Mika Sugiura) Minamigata was selected for its expansive rice paddies — sufficient to support the planned release of 15 to 20 birds — and its rich biodiversity, comparable to that of Sado. One local farmer, Eiji Hamada, has been preparing by creating biotope feeding areas in Hakui. "Twenty years ago, I dreamed of seeing ibises return to Hakui," he said. "I even printed a toki design on the rice bags I use to store my harvest. I can't believe that dream is actually coming true. It's overwhelming." Eiji Hamada practices environmentally friendly rice farming to support the crested ibis. (©JAPAN Forward by Mika Sugiura) To provide a better environment for the birds, Hamada cut his use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers by half. He also placed ibis decoys in the biotope, hoping the real birds will recognize them and feel encouraged to stay. He hopes other farmers will follow his lead. "The first step is helping the birds settle," he said. "Eventually, I hope rice grown in these eco-friendly paddies will command higher prices. I also hope the ibises will attract tourism like on Sado." The bag Hamada uses for brown rice, featuring a crested ibis design he created 20 years ago. He added red as a wish for the bird's release to become a reality. — Hakui City, Ishikawa Prefecture. (©JAPAN Forward by Mika Sugiura) "I'm so glad I've lived to see the day when ibises fly over their homeland again," said Yoshio Muramoto, a Hakui resident who turned 100 this April. He has spent more than 70 years involved in ibis conservation. Muramoto last saw a wild toki nearly 50 years ago. "At the time, I feared the ibis would disappear from Japan forever. It was heartbreaking," he said. Muramoto dreams of seeing crested ibises fly again over Hakui's skies. — Hakui City, Ishikawa Prefecture. (©JAPAN Forward by Mika Sugiura) He has worked closely with China to protect the species and even built a museum dedicated to the ibis on his property to help educate local children. In recognition of his efforts, Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko visited the museum in 2025. "We also get visits from rare storks here in Hakui," Muramoto added. "Just imagining the day when ibises and storks fly side by side in the skies fills me with excitement." Muramoto built a private crested ibis museum for local children. Hakui City, Ishikawa Prefecture (©JAPAN Forward by Mika Sugiura) He also attended the first ibis release ceremony on Sado. "I want to live to see the release here in Hakui next year," he said. The people of Ishikawa are united in their hope that the crested ibis will take flight as a symbol of their recovery. Author: Mika Sugiura このページを 日本語 で読む
Montreal Gazette
2 days ago
- Montreal Gazette
Crazy about vegetables at this local farmer's market
News By The tables were stacked with carrots and beets, their greens still attached, with Japanese eggplants and Lebanese cucumbers, with Tokyo turnips and Chinese cabbage. There were circles of garlic scapes and bunches of cauliflower, yellow and green zucchini, cherry tomatoes in different colours and larger tomatoes, fennel and onions, pails filled with bouquets of wildflowers — and much, much more. The produce had been harvested that morning or the previous day and the air was heady with the scent of basil and strawberries. The scene was the Thursday afternoon produce market in Prince Albert Square in Westmount's Victoria Village. It's run by Complètement Légume, an artisanal organic farm in Mirabel owned and operated by three women — Amélie Rodier, Stéphanie Ethier and Gabrielle Jobin-Richer — and worked, in large measure, by women. It was barely 2 p.m., the market had just opened and the line of customers waiting to pay and holding full baskets, for the most part, was already snaking around the tables. 'I love the product,' said Sara Popa, a regular. 'The produce is much fresher than what I find elsewhere and I find the price point fair. I also love the neighbourhood vibe: It's just so authentic.' Notre-Dame-de-Grâce resident Gabrielle Wener, another regular, was there with her husband, realtor Michael Marjaba. Wener is a naturopath and 'eating healthfully is a priority for me,' she said. 'What's great here is that everything is in season. I don't have to choose: Everything is fresh and delicious.' Stéphane Dupré, a regular who lives a block over from the market, said: 'Their produce is amazing, fresh, organic and affordable — and the women are super-knowledgeable and helpful: They bring so much to the community: It's a real gift to the neighbourhood.' Complètement Légume produce is certified organic by Ecocert Canada. Rodier explained that, in French, 'complètement légume' is slang for 'a little bit crazy.' 'Working in the farming business, you have to be a little crazy,' said Rony Cukier, a developer who has served as a mentor to Rodier and her partners. 'Farming is very, very hard work.' When they started their business in 2017, the three knew little about farming. As colleagues at Profiteausol in Mirabel, which provides support and guidance to agricultural producers in adopting sustainable farming practices that are also profitable, they worked with farmers, but not as farmers. Jobin-Richer had studied agricultural technology and Rodier had experience in project management. 'We had a lot to learn,' said Ethier, who had studied business administration and biochemistry. It started, as so much does, with opportunity: An investor in two Westmount restaurants who knows Cukier said he was looking for a small patch of land to rent for a farm-to-table initiative for the establishments. Cukier owns a piece of farmland in Mirabel in partnership with other people. It was rented to a longtime tenant, Ethier's father — his company, les Gazons Ethier, grows grass — but Ethier was willing to carve out a corner to rent to the women. That first season, in 2016, they grew produce for the two restaurants. The following year, they established Complètement Légume. 'They worked really hard and had a burning desire to learn and to succeed,' said Cukier. 'I was happy to mentor them and encourage them. For me, it was a wonderful thing to help young entrepreneurs with a strong work ethic and to watch them flourish.' The Complètement Légume farm moved to a larger space — 0.8 hectares — equipped with electricity, a greenhouse and an irrigation system and began to offer produce baskets. They started with 30 baskets and grew. Today, as part of the Family Farmers Network, they deliver about 180 baskets per week in Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, Mirabel and Prévost. They also produce more than 40 varieties of vegetables for restaurants, including Taverne sur le Square in Westmount Square, MacTaverne Auberge + Pub in Val-David and Les Arts Gourmets caterers in Prévost. 'Complètement Légume supplies 75 to 80 per cent of my produce the whole summer,' said Stephen Leslie, chef and co-owner of Taverne sur le Square. 'I organize my menu around what they produce: What they bring is so much better than what I could buy at the market. 'Their arugula reminds me of being a kid, when we used to grow our own arugula and it was peppery and bitter. You put that on somebody's plate and you know you are serving something that you have confidence in. The eggplant they grow is almost sweet. People say, 'It's so good.' Same with their zucchini,' Leslie said. 'As we get to midsummer, you can barely see the kitchen, it's stacked so high with produce: Any cook who comes through the door says, 'Chef, this stuff is amazing.'' In addition to the Prince Albert Square market, Complètement Légume is at the Val-David summer market in the Laurentians on Saturday mornings. The women are partners, but only Rodier is involved full-time. Ethier and Jobin-Richer have jobs elsewhere and are there one day a week. Officially, Rodier takes Sundays off, 'but, really, it's seven days,' she said. Five of the farm's eight employees are women. The Community Events division of the city of Westmount helped Complètement Légume set up in Prince Albert Square in 2022, once the plan had been approved by the city's then-director-general; today they do their own setup, arriving about 90 minutes ahead of time to set up tables and an outdoor canopy and to unpack produce from the reusable bins in which it is transported and set it out. Cynthia Lulham, who served on Westmount city council for 26 years, until 2021, initiated the Prince Albert Square project and that of another square, at Greene Ave. and de Maisonneuve Blvd. The goal was to provide a public place for events and a meeting place, she said. The first thing Prince Albert Square was used for was the Complètement Légume market — and the weekly market 'is exactly what I had hoped for,' said Lulham, who since 2023 has served as director-general of the association of Westmount merchants. 'The produce is amazing.' AT A GLANCE The Complètement Légume produce market in Prince Albert Square, at the southwest intersection of Prince Albert Ave. and Sherbrooke St. in Westmount, operates Thursdays 2-6 p.m. It will continue until mid-October. Related Stories from Montreal Gazette Columnists Brownstein: Atop a Walmart, Lufa's latest greenhouse is almost ready to harvest March 19, 2024 6:00 AM News Canada's only supermarket rooftop vegetable garden grows in St-Laurent July 28, 2024 12:13 PM Susan Schwartz montrealgazette 514-386-8794 Susan Schwartz, a native Montrealer, is a longtime reporter and feature writer at The Gazette.
Japan Forward
2 days ago
- Japan Forward
A Triangular Building with a 20-Degree Angle
Not far from Nerima Station on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line, in a quiet residential corner of Tokyo's Nerima Ward, I came across an unusual building. It's a five-story structure with a basement, painted in bright yellow and orange. The bold colors stand out, but what really caught my eye was the shape. The building is a narrow triangle — so thin from certain angles that it barely looks like a building at all. I took a closer look at the sharpest point. The wall there was only about 60 centimeters wide. Using Google Maps' aerial view, I measured the interior angle — it came out to just 20 degrees. The Nerima Triangle Building has five floors above ground and one basement level. Old signs show it used to house small bars. Curious about what the inside of that narrow tip might look like, I took the opportunity to go in. The basement had been converted into a multipurpose rental space, so I was able to take a look around. Entrance to the basement rental area | Stairs leading to the basement Just inside the door was a spiral staircase. It was steep and narrow, like something out of a cave or hidden passage. I carefully made my way downstairs, ducking my head as I went. To my surprise, the space below was warm and inviting. It looked like it could comfortably host a small party of about five people. In the back, there was space for a fridge, a kitchen sink, a washing machine, and even a shower room. "Please enjoy the space like your own secret base," said Mio Aoki, who manages the rental. The basement rental space. The space includes Wi-Fi and a projector. I headed toward the narrowest part of the building. There, neatly tucked beneath the spiral stairs, was a toilet. According to floor plans I found on a housing website, it seems every floor has a toilet in the same spot. The toilet in the corner of the basement space. The building is certainly one of a kind. I wondered what else it was used for beyond the rental space. According to Aoki, the upper floors are occupied by residents. Before the basement was converted, it served as a storage area. Old signage on the side of the building suggests it once housed a snack bar or izakaya. As for living in the basement, Aoki laughed and said, "That would take a bit of courage." From the front, it looks like a relatively normal building. ( Read the article in Japanese . ) Author: Ikue Mio, The Sankei Shimbun
