6. Awards, certificates of appreciation, etc.

"Our Village is Beautiful" Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Award

In 1983, he received the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Award for his work "Our Village is Beautiful."

The award was given for the magnificent views, high agricultural productivity, efforts to beautify the town's borders, and the cultivation of sunflowers as part of a flower-growing initiative that is undertaken throughout the town as the town flower.

"Himawari Land" certified as one of the 100 best urban development projects of 1989

Hokkaido Town Development Project Himawari Land Hokuryu (Hokuryu Town) January 27, 1989

Received the "Sunflower Town Revitalization Activity Grand Prize" at the 1991 All Hokkaido Agricultural Cooperative Women's Division Conference.

At the 39th All Hokkaido Agricultural Cooperative Women's Division Convention held at Tokachigawa Onsen in November 1991, Ms. Tomoya Kabata, head of the Hokuryu Town Agricultural Cooperative Women's Division, represented the central and northern Hokkaido blocks in a presentation on her experiences with organizational activities. She won the top prize and also received the Hokkaido Agricultural Cooperative Women's Division Association Chairman's Award and the Governor's Award.

In August 1992, they represented Hokkaido at the Tohoku-Hokkaido Tournament held in Miyagi Prefecture. They gave a lively presentation about their activities over the past 12 years, including the development of sunflower oil and health foods and self-sufficiency through the cultivation of one are of sunflowers per household, the effective use of the rice cake to produce high-quality organic rice, and the contribution to revitalizing the town as a tourist resource.

Triple winner of the 1994 Regional Development Awards

The 11th National Regional Development Awards Ceremony (sponsored by the National Land Agency, the National Regional Development Promotion Council, etc.) was held in Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture on November 10, 1994. After a rigorous on-site inspection and screening in August of that year, eight organizations, including Hokuryu Town, were selected.

Mayor Yamamoto attended the National Exchange Conference held in Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture, where he received three awards: the National Regional Development Promotion Council Chairman's Award, the Hokkaido-Tohoku Development Finance Corporation President's Award, and the Regional Development Exchange Conference Nagahama Conference Executive Committee Chairman's Award.

The reason for the award was the efforts made by all townspeople, from children to the elderly, to promote sunflower cultivation throughout the town, create a sunflower village, promote agricultural tourism, and develop local sunflower-related products.

Hokuryu Junior High School "Sunflowers of the World"

❂ Certificate of Appreciation for Tourism Hospitality Practices, 2009 (Governor of Hokkaido)
❂ 6th "My Village is Beautiful - Hokkaido" Encouragement Award, 2013 (Hokkaido Regional Development Bureau)
❂ Sorachi District Educational Practice Award 2019 (Sorachi Education Bureau)

Sunflower Rice Producers Association won the Grand Prize in the Collective Organization category at the 46th Japan Agriculture Awards

On Sunday, March 12, 2017, we received the 46th Japan Agriculture Award, sponsored by JA Zenchu and the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK).

The reason for the award is that the Hokuryu Sunflower Rice Producers Association obtained the JAS standard for agricultural products with production information disclosure in 2006 (the first and only rice collective organization in the country to obtain this), allowing consumers to check rice production information and ensuring traceability (displaying the production history of each producer).

"Himawari Rice" is grown using less than half the amount of pesticides used compared to Hokkaido's standard practice, and has a protein content of 7.5% or less. In order to reduce the amount of pesticides used, thorough soil testing is carried out, seeds are disinfected with hot water, and appropriate pest and disease outbreak forecasting is carried out, allowing for rice cultivation that exceeds strict standards. The branding of "Himawari Rice," a groundbreaking initiative in rice cultivation, was highly praised, leading to the award.

Received the Bronze Award in the Regional Specialty Category at the 4th "Our Village is Beautiful - Hokkaido" competition (Sunflower Rice Producers Association)

In September 2008, the Hokkaido Regional Development Bureau awarded the farm to all farmers for their efforts to reduce the use of pesticides in order to provide safe and secure rice to consumers, and for obtaining certification for the JAS standard for agricultural products produced publicly, thereby expanding sales channels to the capital prefecture and Kansai region.

Flower Tourism Award (Hokuryu Town)

In September 2008, the Japan Tourism Association awarded the town an award in recognition of the town's efforts to create a flower tourism destination with the townspeople working together, and the fact that Sunflower Village has been attracting more and more attention as a tourist destination year by year.

As a consolation prize, the Japan Tourism Association gave us a wooden planter worth approximately 1 million yen.

Hokuryu's "Sunflower Village" ranked first in the "Play" category

In the 2013 general election for "Soraichi," a popular tourist spot in the Sorachi region (24 cities and towns) entered, Hokuryu Town's "Himawari no Sato" won the most votes (739) in the "Play" category.

It came in first place with a lead of nearly 100 votes over second place Yuni Garden (Yuni Town).

"Sunflower Village" is highly rated on social media in Taiwan

The Hokkaido Tourism Organization (a public corporation) has published a report on the FY2016 Hokkaido Foreign Tourist Revisit Promotion Project, which revealed that Hokuryu Town's "Sunflower Village" has received exceptionally high ratings in Taiwan on social media.

Taiwan (SNS analysis results)

Hokuryu Town's "Sunflower Village" is highly rated, but its recognition as a municipal and tourist resource is low.
In terms of the evaluation by tourism category, the eastern Hokkaido area has the best balance. Lake Akan is particularly highly rated among the tourist attractions in the eastern Hokkaido area, with many posts about hot springs, scenery, sledding, fishing, and other activities, making it a popular tourist destination for lodging and experiences.

Attracting visitors to Himawari no Sato

❂ Attracting visitors by utilizing Hokuryu Town's "Sunflower Village"

Social media analysis shows that Taiwanese visitors to Hokkaido have a strong interest in the natural scenery of the prefecture. Furthermore, the "Sunflower Village" receives exceptionally high praise, so there is a possibility that increasing awareness of Hokuryu's sunflower fields could increase the number of visitors to the town.

Discover Rural and Fishing Village Treasures Excellent Case Study Award (Kurosengoku Business Cooperative Association)

"Discover the Treasures of Rural Areas" is a program run by the Cabinet Secretariat and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to select and promote nationwide excellent examples of efforts to revitalize rural areas and increase incomes by drawing out the potential of rural areas in order to realize "strong agriculture, forestry and fisheries industries" and "beautiful and vibrant rural areas."

The Kurosengoku Business Cooperative (Chairman Takada Yukio) received the highest commendation. The award was given in recognition of their daily activities, including the production and product development of Hokkaido's rare Kurosengoku soybeans, and their active participation in various events both in and outside of Hokkaido to promote the product.

Hometown Development Award Local Government Award (Sunflower Oil Regeneration Project)

The purpose of this award is to recognize organizations and individuals across the country who are working hard to improve the places they hold dear, "hometowns," thereby increasing passion and enthusiasm for hometown development and helping to build rich and vibrant local communities.

The award was highly praised for "reviving and reviving the cultivation of oilseed sunflowers for the purpose of producing edible sunflower oil, and the production and sale of sunflower oil."