[Inzai City, Chiba] Elementary students plant rice for local sake 'Legend of INZAI': Experiencing specialty product development through regional collaboration

## Elementary students join sake production! Getting muddy for 'future sake'

On Monday, May 11, 2026, nine fifth-grade students from Inzai Municipal Motono Elementary School experienced rice planting in a rural paddy field beside their school as part of their integrated studies.

This initiative is part of a sake-making process led by the local Chamber of Commerce to create a new specialty product for the city. It aims to provide the next generation with opportunities to encounter agriculture, learn about local culture, and think about the future by growing sake rice at local elementary schools.

## 'It's cold!', 'It's fun!': Cheers amidst the mud under regional watch

The field was once abandoned farmland, reclaimed by local residents to revive sake rice cultivation and provide children with experiential learning opportunities.

On the day of the event, members of 'Satoyama-no-kai Ecomo' (a group involved in rural conservation), Chamber of Commerce members, and Inzai Mayor Fujishiro participated. As they stepped into the muddy fields, the children shouted, 'It's cold!' and 'It's hard to walk!' Despite stumbling in the unfamiliar mud, they followed the warm cheers of local residents and carefully hand-planted each seedling with smiles on their faces. Participating students commented, 'It was my first time planting by hand, it was hard but fun,' and 'I wanted to plant more.'

## Sowing seeds for the future of local industry: A collaborative food education project

This project, centered on the local sake 'Legend of INZAI' produced by the Inzai City Chamber of Commerce, aims to connect the value of local resources to the future. By involving children in growing the sake rice, it provides them with a chance to learn that local products and industries are supported by many people. It is a socially valuable initiative that balances food education with environmental learning, including deepening understanding of the conservation of the rural landscape where the activity takes place.

## From autumn harvest to Junmai sake 'Legend of INZAI' in April 2027

After being harvested in the autumn and going through a brewing process, the sake rice is scheduled to be completed as the Junmai sake 'Legend of INZAI' around April 2027. We hope you look forward to this sake born from the children's aspirations and the collective power of the region.