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Haruna Endo never saw it coming, but after more than 10 years of trial and error, she managed to sell her konnyaku jelly by using it to make eye-catching products for to attract Japanese and foreign consumers.
"It was like I was struck by lightning," said Endo, who calls herself a "hyper konnyaku creator," remembering the first time she had eaten konnyaku freshly prepared by her husband's uncle. Numata, Gunma Prefecture, northwest of Tokyo.
"It was so sweet and it completely changed my image of konnyaku, I wanted to spread the news," said Endo, director of Kasho, a konnyaku-centric factory in Gunma Prefecture. The region is Japan's largest producer of tuber stems, also known as konjac, konjaku or konnyaku, with a market share of about 90%.
Endo sells a wide variety of unique products, mostly spiced with a "spirit of pleasure," such as konnyaku bubble tea or konnyaku balloon jelly desserts, which come in a variety of colors, perfect as an Instagram feed.
(Endo konnyaku jelly)
She also names her products using onomatopoeias such as "chururin" ("slurp") or "puri puri" ("boing") or labeling them as "tengu gifts", a long-nosed creature found in legendary folklore. Japanese.
In August, when a limited number of konnyaku bubble teas were introduced at a hotel in the popular Kusatsu Spa in the prefecture, more than 1,700 drinks were sold in about two weeks. Encouraged, Endo intends to sell them elsewhere next summer.
Although it is ultimately a low-calorie food, konnyaku can shock those who are not used to its almost horrible appearance of greyish-white, rubber and gelatin.
Indeed, the food, derived from the corme of the plant, carries nicknames such as "language of the devil", "voodoo lily", "yam of elephants" and "palm of the snake". It was introduced to Japan from Indochina about 1,500 years ago.
The tasteless food, 98% water, often appears in Japanese dishes such as oden, a soy-flavored broth with fish cakes, radishes and boiled eggs, as well as in a soup. miso with pork and vegetables. Shirataki, a konnyaku cut into noodle-shaped strips, is used in hot dishes because it absorbs soup well.
However, demand for konnyaku has not increased as the domestic market has declined in recent years, prompting Endo to export its products abroad.
She added that the products sold in the United States, New Jersey and Los Angeles in particular, had been well received by locals, most of whom had tasted them for the first time.
"It does not make sense to do the same thing as other konnyaku farmers, so I wanted to be different and do something that could be attractive on the world stage," Endo said.
"Fortunately, Japanese cuisine has recently exploded, and I hope more people will get acquainted with konnyaku," she said.
The road to success has not been easy for Endo, who has previously held positions as a worker in a dental clinic and as an English teacher. But before konnyaku, she had never worked in the agricultural sector.
In 2005, Endo moved to Numata, her husband's hometown, in hopes of raising her child in an environment closer to nature. She had the opportunity to try her luck with the production of konnyaku after an acquaintance of her stepfather had decided to leave agriculture.
But when she really started, she discovered that the konnyaku devil was in the details. "I had no skill or experience and the reality of farming was completely different from the image I had," Endo said.
"I've read books about konjac culture, but it works completely differently in reality – it's something where experience counts for everything."
(Endo konnyaku cut into blocks.)
She said she was surprised at how sensitive the konnyaku was to the weather. "My stomach was hurting me because of stress every time a typhoon was coming in. The growth of konnyaku, it's like gambling, a high risk, a high return," Endo said.
Unlike potatoes that can be harvested in a few months, it takes about three years to harvest konjac. They are vulnerable to cold and rot easily.
About ten years later, Endo finally acquired the skills needed to grow konnyaku. In August 2015, she inherited an uncle's manufacturing plant from her husband, which allowed her to make the same konnyaku that had hit her like a lightning bolt.
As a newcomer, it was not easy to find customers. "But if you have the will and the courage, even a small farmer like me can do it and even diversify into the world," said Endo, adding that his latest plan is to sell konnyaku bubble tea in Yangon, in Myanmar.
"It never looks like a chore because I'm kind of a geek who can be devoted to something that interests me."
(Endo picks konjac plants from a farm near his factory.)
Konnyaku's soluble dietary fiber helps clear the intestines and helps stop eating too much by stalling appetite, experts say.
"It's a food that Beverly Hills can not ignore," said Endo in the hope of further developing its sales in the United States and perhaps even growing konjac there.
"Freshness is everything for konnyaku, so why not grow it in the United States rather than export it?" My dream of extending the konnyaku's popularity never ends, "she said. declared. "It's actually going with anything, soup, curry or yogurt, so it's a global food," she said.
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