A Hub to Experience the Senses of Food and Living, Exploring Future Satoyama Lifestyles and Ways of Life

Shiiba Village in Miyazaki Prefecture, known as one of Japan's three great hidden villages, retains values nurtured by the coexistence of people and nature, including slash-and-burn agriculture recognized as a World Agricultural Heritage, hunting culture that reveres mountain deities, and a food culture that cherishes mountain blessings like wild vegetables and shiitake mushrooms.

To pass on these values of Shiiba Village to the future, we are working to create a hub where people can experience this worldview through food, interaction, and stays.

Starting in July 2026, we will sequentially open the restaurant "Nosari" and the snack bar "Nava," followed by the accommodation facility "Satoyama Yuso" in the fall.

By experiencing life and culture in Shiiba Village, we aim to create opportunities for each individual to reflect on their relationship with nature and their own way of life, and to explore the future of satoyama living and its richness together.

A hunter and hunting dogs heading for a boar hunt

Slash-and-burn agriculture registered as a World Agricultural Heritage

Project Background: From Concept to Reality

This project was born during the formulation of Shiiba Village's tourism promotion plan.

Through repeated dialogues with residents about the village's future, it was suggested that while rich values nurtured by people and nature, such as slash-and-burn agriculture, hunting, and food culture, still exist in daily life, it would be beneficial to have accommodation and dining facilities where these values can be experienced.

Sato Yume Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Sato Yume"), which supported the formulation of the tourism promotion plan, met Mr. Hiizu Omaen, a licensed architect, hunter, and chairman of the Shiiba Village Tourism Association, during this process.

Mr. Omaen has long held the desire, "I want to pass on the fundamental experiences of using all five senses in nature, playing with friends while running through forests and climbing trees, listening to the babbling of rivers, and learning through trial and error, to the next generation."

Beyond that desire, he envisioned a "Forest Amusement Park" where both adults and children can play, learn, and grow together in earnest, with the nature of his hometown, Shiiba Village, as the stage.

Nurturing a place for growth and challenge in nature, together with the region. This philosophy deeply overlaps with the project's mission to connect Shiiba Village's nature and way of life to the future.

Through the combined efforts of Mr. Hiizu Omaen, who has been envisioning this in Shiiba Village, Sato Yume, which provides support from the planning stage, and the Shiiba Village Tourism Association, which supports regional connections, the concept has moved forward into a full-fledged business.

To realize this, we have established "Omaen no Wa Co., Ltd." (jointly funded by Mr. Hiizu Omaen, Sato Yume, and the Tourism Association) to manage accommodation and experience businesses, and "Meguru Shiiba Co., Ltd." (jointly funded by Sato Yume and the Tourism Association) to manage food and beverage businesses, and are proceeding with the creation of a hub to experience the values of Shiiba Village through stays, food, and interaction.

Mr. Hiizu Omaen

Children playing in the Forest Amusement Park

"Nosari": Beyond the Crucial Stage

In Shiiba Village, there is a word called "Nosari."

It signifies the blessings bestowed by the mountain deities and nature after people have done their utmost, sometimes overcoming difficulties and sacrifices. It is gratitude for blessings that come after fulfilling one's duties, rather than simply waiting for good fortune. This approach to nature is encapsulated in the word "Nosari."

The hunting culture of Shiiba Village strongly retains this value.

Before entering the mountains, hunters offer sake to the mountain deities and pray for gratitude for the mountain's bounty and for their safety. They also observe the "Sakameguri," a system of directions and calendar cycles based on the ten heavenly stems and twelve earthly branches, and refrain from hunting in certain directions. Even hunters who know the mountains intimately follow the principles of nature, not their own convenience. This attitude has been passed down through generations. Even the most experienced hunter is not guaranteed to encounter prey. Therefore, in Shiiba Village, it is thought of not as "caught," but as "received."

Not being overly greedy, not forgetting gratitude for nature, and doing one's utmost. Accepting the blessings that follow is the spirit of "Nosari."

We hope that each act of eating, experiencing, staying, and meeting people will serve as an opportunity to re-examine our relationship with nature, our future satoyama lifestyle, and our way of life. We aim not only to offer the opportunity to taste local ingredients and stay in the area, but also to convey the approach to nature behind them, the lifestyle of mutual support between people and nature, and the spirit of "Nosari" passed down in Shiiba Village through food and living.

Boar and hunting dogs

The hunter's rule: "Sakameguri"

Opening a Hub to Experience the Blessings of Satoyama: "Food" and "Accommodation"

As a hub to experience satoyama life, Shiiba Village's food culture, and human connections, we will open the restaurant "Nosari" and the snack bar "Nava" in July 2026.

At the restaurant "Nosari," we will serve dishes that utilize the rich mountain blessings of Shiiba, such as game meats like deer and wild boar, enoha fish, shiitake mushrooms, wild vegetables, and other vegetables.

In the evening, the same location will operate as the snack bar "Nava." "Nava" is a word in the Shiiba dialect meaning "shiitake mushroom." We will foster a place for interaction where local residents, new arrivals, and tourists can naturally gather, converse, and form new connections. (Details on business hours, menu, etc., will be announced again in early July.)

Enoha fish raised in the clear streams of Shiiba

Charcoal-grilled wild boar meat

In the fall of 2026, we plan to open "Satoyama Yuso," a rental accommodation facility.

"Satoyama Yuso" is a base for stays where guests can reflect on their own values and way of life while immersing themselves in the nature and daily life of Shiiba Village. We will offer stays that provide a glimpse into the daily life of Shiiba Village through interaction with the changing seasons and local people.

In the future, we plan to develop programs that allow visitors to experience satoyama life, such as slash-and-burn agriculture, food culture, and mountain activities. We aim for time spent in Shiiba to be an opportunity to consider our relationship with nature, the future of satoyama living, and our own sense of richness.

(Details about "Satoyama Yuso" will be announced later.)

"Satoyama Yuso" nestled in the satoyama

A spectacular view from a giant swing

Future Outlook

"Connecting Satoyama Living to the Future." This is our philosophy.

Much of the wisdom of satoyama living, including slash-and-burn agriculture and hunting, resides primarily in the memories and bodies of people in their 60s and 70s and older, and contact points with the next generation are becoming limited.

These cultures have the potential to gradually disappear if left unattended.

We intend to carefully gather fragments of this lifestyle, re-edit them into tours, food experiences, and accommodation programs, thereby creating a cycle that fosters both external learning and internal rediscovery, and passing it on to the next generation.

Our vision is to connect Shiiba Village's way of life to the future as something that "continues to live."

Company Overview

【Omaen no Wa Co., Ltd.】

Location: 357 Fudono, Shiiba-mura, Higashiusuki-gun, Miyazaki Prefecture

Representative: Hiizu Omaen, Representative Director

Established: March 2025

Business Activities: Operation of accommodation facilities and experience programs

Contact: omaenowa@gmail.com

【Meguru Shiiba Co., Ltd.】

Location: 1826-108 Shimofukura, Shiiba-mura, Higashiusuki-gun, Miyazaki Prefecture

Representative: Takahito Matano, Representative Director

Established: March 2025

Business Activities: Operation of food and beverage business, development of specialty products

Contact: megurushiiba@gmail.com