Congratulations! Hokuryu Town Sunflower Oil Regeneration Project Wins Fiscal Year 2020 "Hometown Development Award" Local Government Award (Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Award) & Hokkaido Governor's Letter of Appreciation Presentation Ceremony for Achieving 5,000 Days Without Traffic Accident Fatalities

Friday, February 5, 2021

On Thursday, February 4th, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' FY2020 "Hometown Development Award" local government award ceremony and the Hokkaido Governor's Letter of Appreciation for achieving 5,000 days without a traffic accident fatality ceremony were held in the Hokuryu Town Hall reception room.

The award was presented to Hokuryu Town Mayor Yutaka Sano by Sorachi General Bureau Director Takano Hanhiro, who presented the award certificate and plaque to the town.

2020 Hometown Development Award Local Government Award

The Hometown Development Award recognizes organizations and individuals who aim to enhance passion and commitment to hometown development and build a rich and vibrant local community. Established in 1983, this year marks the 38th time the award has been given, and to date, 1,120 organizations and individuals have been awarded the award.

This year, 21 organizations and 8 individuals received awards, including individual awards, group awards, and local government awards. Hokuryu Town received the local government award, and 6 organizations, including Hokuryu Town, received the award. This is the first time for Hokuryu Town to receive this award, and the only one in Hokkaido to do so.

The award was given in recognition of Hokuryu Town's efforts to revive the temporarily suspended production of sunflower oil in collaboration with Nisshin Oillio Group, a major edible oil manufacturer, to brand "sunflowers" as a core local resource, and to develop and expand sales of high-quality sunflower oil products.

Award certificate and plaque presented to local government for the 2020 Hometown Development Award

"Your organization has made great efforts to revitalize the region and achieved outstanding results in creating a hometown. For this reason, we are commending you. January 28, 2021, Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Ryoichi Takeda."

Greetings from Director Takano Tanyo of the Sorachi Regional Development Bureau

"Congratulations on receiving this Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Award. The reason for the award, which is to 'revive the discontinued specialty product of sunflower oil and use it to promote the local community,' is that your efforts have been recognized as admirable activities on a national level.

"I hope that this award will give momentum to the town's future development plans centered around sunflowers, and that the town's plans will continue to develop. Congratulations on this award."

Greetings from Hokuryu Town Mayor Yutaka Sano

"We are thrilled to have received such high praise from across the nation in the 2020 Hometown Development Awards. We are truly grateful to Director Takano for conveying this to us. We would like to continue to cherish the treasures of Hokuryu Town, sunflowers and sunflower oil, and work together as a townspeople to create an attractive town. We look forward to your continued guidance. Thank you very much."

The history of sunflower oil

・1980 (Showa 55): Start of sunflower oil production
・2003 (Heisei 15): Production was suspended due to aging equipment.
・2016 (Heisei 28): A lecture by Hisashi Sonehara, a local community creation advisor, was held in Hokuryu Town, and thanks to his efforts, a collaboration with the Nisshin Oillio Group was realized, and the Hokuryu sunflower oil reclamation project was launched.
・2017 (Heisei 29): After a full year of work, the product development of "Sunflower Oil" produced in Hokuryu Town was realized.
・2018 (Heisei 30): Launch of new product "Roasted Sunflower Oil," an additive-free, first-pressed premium virgin oil. In the same year, launch of "Kurosengoku Soybean Sunflower Oil Dressing."
・2021 (Reiwa 3): Received the Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Grand Prize "Reiwa 2 Hometown Development Award" Local Government Award

Sunflower oil sales promotion activities

In the five years since sunflower oil's revival, sales promotion activities for sunflower oil have been actively carried out.

・2017:Sunflower Oil Regeneration Project Information Session and Tasting Event、Mayor Yutaka Sano announces the commercialization of "Sunflower Oil" on the Hidaka Mutsuro Show (STV Radio)
・2018:Sunflower oil seminar and tasting lunch (Sapporo)、Petit Marché @ Farm Aid Ginza, Hokuryu Town Promotion of Sunflower Rice and Sunflower Oil
・2019:Sales fair for Hokuryu Town's special products "Sunflower oil," "Sunflower rice," and "Kurosengoku soybeans" @Mitsui Outlet Park Kitahiroshima
・2020:Sorachi Fair 2020 (Hokkaido Dosanko Plaza Sapporo store)、Hokuryu Town will be holding the "Sunflower Tourism and Product Fair" 2020 in Chikaho

We also participate in various other events to promote the appeal of Hokuryu sunflower oil.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the many people who have been involved in the revival of Hokuryu sunflower oil, including the producers who lovingly cultivate Hokuryu sunflowers, the major companies involved in the creation of high-quality sunflower oil, the people who commercialize and process the oil into other products, and the passionate town hall staff involved in promoting the sale of such sunflower oil.

With endless gratitude to everyone involved...

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2020

・Hokuryu Town's "Sunflower Tourism and Local Products Fair" 2020 will be held in Chikaho, promoting the town with the participation of all of Hokuryu!(November 5, 2020)
・Face-to-face sales of Hokuryu Town's specialty products @ Sorachi Fair 2020 (Hokkaido Dosanko Plaza Sapporo store)(October 19, 2020)
・Hokuryu Town's specialties, "Sunflower oil, rice crackers from the fields, buckwheat flakes, and Kurosengokudon," are now available at Hokkaido Support Todoku (Coop Sapporo)!(May 8, 2020)

2019

　
・"Kurosengoku Soybeans & Sansan Sunflower Oil & Dressing" Gift Set [Introducing Hokuryu Town's Delicious Foods! No. 02](December 5, 2019)
・"Hokuryu Sunflower Balm" now available! Made with 80% sunflower oil from Hokuryu Town and no chemical additives(July 29, 2019)
・New Sunflower Bread Released! Made with roasted sunflower oil from Hokuryu Town(July 20, 2019)
・Sales fair for Hokuryu Town's special products "Sunflower oil," "Sunflower rice," and "Kurosengoku soybeans" @Mitsui Outlet Park Kitahiroshima(July 1, 2019)

2018

・Introducing the new "Ramen Salad" using Ajidokoro Hachihachi's original "Kurosengoku and Sunflower Oil Dressing" (Himawari Tourist Center)(July 19, 2018)
・Newly released Kurosengoku soybean sunflower oil dressing!(July 14, 2018)
・Petit Marché @ Farm Aid Ginza 2018 Summer - Promotion of Hokuryu Town Sunflower Rice & Sansan Sunflower Oil(July 11, 2018)
・Sunflower rice and sunflower oil sales promotion activity "Play. Live. Grow. Let's go to SATOYAMA & SATOUMI 2018" @ Pacifico Yokohama (Yokohama City)(April 10, 2018)
・In search of freshly squeezed sunflower oil @ Rakuno Gakuen University Food Planning and Development Laboratory Research Presentation(March 9, 2018)
・More than 200 people participated in a seminar to learn about sunflower oil and a tasting lunch event (Sapporo City) to taste sunflower oil.(February 19, 2018)
・Roasted Sunflower Oil, made from 100% sunflower seeds grown in Hokuryu Town, is now available at Sunflower Park Hokuryu Onsen!(February 13, 2018)

2017

・A Hokuryu Town product exhibition featuring rice, Kurosengoku soybeans, and sunflower oil was held at Yumoya (Taichung City, Taiwan).(December 11, 2017)
・The sunflower oil recycling project was featured in the Hokkaido Creation Journal "Tsukuru"(July 12, 2017)
・Mayor Yutaka Sano announces the commercialization of "Sunflower Oil" on the Hidaka Mutsuro Show (STV Radio)(February 23, 2017)
・Sansan Sunflower Oil (Hokuryu Town x Nisshin Oillio Group) product launch(February 17, 2017)
・Sunflower Oil Regeneration Project Information Session & Tasting Session (with recipes)(January 28, 2017)

・Harvesting and drying of oil sunflowers begins(September 28, 2017)
・Honoka Agricultural Cooperative [No.21] Aerial shot of weeding in a sunflower oil field(June 15, 2017)
・Honoka Agricultural Cooperative [No. 15] Harvesting sunflower seeds for sunflower oil(September 29, 2016)

2016

・Togo's oil story(May 2016 - December 2016)

Ceremony to present a letter of appreciation from the Governor of Hokkaido for achieving 5,000 days without a traffic fatality

Next, a letter of appreciation from the Governor of Hokkaido was presented for achieving 5,000 days without a traffic accident death.

With the start of the new year of 2021 (Reiwa 3) and the beginning of spring, the town of Hokuryu is celebrating two overlapping celebrations, and the light of a bright future is beginning to shine, indicating a bright future.

We sincerely pray for the continued development and bright future of Hokuryu Town!!!

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◇ Photography and editing: Noboru Terauchi Interview and text: Ikuko Terauchi