JA Okinawa begins shipping citrus tankan Hayata to locations throughout the country
At the Northern District Farming and Promotion Center of JA Okinawa in Isagawa, Nago, JA Okinawa has begun shipping tankans, a citrus fruit known as a taste of winter. Workers select the better quality fruit for shipping.
January 11, 2012 Ryukyu Shimpo
On January 10, a ceremony marking this season’s first shipment of the citrus tankan Hayata was held at the Northern District Farming and Promotion Center of JA (Japan Agricultural Co-operatives) Okinawa, in Isagawa, Nago. About 100 participants, including producers and JA members, dispatched the tankan, which are known as an Okinawan taste of winter, to locations throughout the country. The impact of the typhoons last May and August mean that this year’s total shipping volume is expected to be just 239 tons, the lowest to date. According to the JA, this season’s tankans are characterized by their strong acidity, but sweetness and relatively large beads. Shipments will continue until mid-February.
As of November 28, the JA estimated that the production volume of tankan for fiscal 2011, 2011 will be 197 tons of fruit and 42 tons of processed product. This year’s fruit volume will be 32 percent of the previous fiscal year’s production volume in that production has fallen to 65 percent of that of the previous year. The total shipment volume is expected to remain at 35 percent of that of the previous year and the price for tankan will rise slightly.
At the shipment ceremony, on behalf of farm producers, Tamotsu Matsuda, the chief of the northern district office of JA Okinawa and Muneo Gakiya said some words of greetings. Gakiya speculated that it would take several years to recover from the typhoon damage and stressed the need for countermeasures to be put in place. He went on to say, “As producers, we would like to deliver tankans that the consumer that taste great, and are thoroughly safe to eat.”
(English translation by T&CT, Mark Ealey)
Previous Article:Okinawan youngsters to participate in networking tour to Brazil for the first time
Next Article:Singer UA establishes organization to consider food-safety issues around radiation contamination
[Similar Articles]
- Winter tankan season begins
- Okinawa Prefecture anticipates 30% lower mango production in 2012
- Okinawa Prefectural Government produces new Okinawan mangoes
- 280 tons of shima dofu shipped to Tokyo
- Processing of sugarcane starts – lowest output since Okinawa’s reversion
Webcam(Kokusai Street)
