Local Cuisine around Japan: Vol. 5 Rokunohe

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1 Japan Local Government Centre (CLAIR, Sydney) This issue includes: 1 Local Cuisine around Japan CLAIR Forum 5 The Hobart Yaizu Sister City 40th Anniversary! 6 Osaka, Kobe and Sakai City Opinion Exchange 6 Ehime prefecture Opinion Exchange 6 Supporting Okayama prefecture 7 Supporting Sanda City 7 Multicultural Study Tour Preparation 8 CLAIR Forum Magazine Interviews 8 JETAA Western Australia receives Foreign Minister s Commendation Award 9 Farewell Messages 11 From the Director Local Cuisine around Japan: Vol. 5 Rokunohe Shamrock: Bringing chicken to the table and hope to the countryside Pull up a list of restaurants in Sydney or Melbourne on your phone, and you d be hard pressed to thumb scroll through more than a few inches without landing on something either from Japan, or inspired by Japan. So much so has Japanese cuisine muscled its way into the market in the last couple of decades, that residents of the country who travel overseas are actually surprised to be able to so frequently indulge in the familiar flavours and fragrances of their homeland. But when Westerners talk about Japanese food, we tend to fall into a rigid pattern of thought as to what it consists of. Most people who have not been to Japan will nod their heads in unquestionable faith that sushi and sashimi are the cornerstones of a typical Japanese diet. But what do they eat when they don t eat sushi? A fair question, to which the answer is most likely ramen, tempura or wagyu beef. What about free range chicken, though? Did it make your list? Well, you might be surprised to find out, that there s a small town in Japan s frozen North that is working hard to make free range Japanese chicken part of your image of the country s many culinary delights. Whilst the reality of a stock standard Japanese diet may shock restaurant goers with its military ration style simplicity and efficiency, most will agree that the Japanese have a remarkable talent for doing quite a lot, with very little to work with. The entire concept of sashimi hinges upon your ability to appreciate the subtlety in taste and texture of what is essentially a cold, unadorned chunk of uncooked fish meat. In the same fashion, the small town of Rokunohe, located in Honshu s northernmost prefecture of Aomori, is hard at work to infuse their unique brand of Shamrock free range chicken with umami before it even comes anywhere close to your plate. Page 1

2 The word Shamrock is equal parts portmanteau and pun and has nothing to do with Ireland, whatsoever. Shamo, is a broad term used to refer to gamefowl in Japan, and is a Japanese language corruption of the old name for Thailand (Siam), where the birds were originally sourced. The tail end of the word in Japanese is rokku, i.e rock, which refers to America s Plymouth Rock breed of chickens. These two strains of bird DNA are bred together in Rokunohe to create the Premium Shamrock Number 6 brand of Aomori free range chicken, which boasts a texture and flavour that reflects its superior parentage. As is the case with the world famous wagyu beef, a great deal of care is taken with the cultivation of Shamrock birds. Each chicken is fed a steady diet of protein enriched grain which is enhanced with garlic flavouring. As a result, the glutamic acid levels of Shamrock birds are 1.6 times higher than average, with linolenic acid levels at 2.6 times the average. What does this mean in layman's terms? It means that the meat is far more tender and tastier than your average store bought chook. Additionally, Shamrock birds raised in areas almost twice as large as standard fowl, for a longer time and without any antibiotic laced feed whatsoever. However, its flavour and potential as a delicious source of protein are only half the story of why Aomori Shamrock is so important to the area. At a time when Japan is suffering with the problems of urbanisation and struggling to revitalize its quickly waning rural districts, Shamrock brand chicken represents a valuable opportunity for rural Aomori and Rokunohe to put themselves on the map of Japan and on the radar of tourists. I work at the town hall here in Rokunohe, and as part of that job I travelled with a crack team of Shamrock chicken masters to the Tohoku Revival Fair held in Tokyo, where I felt a bit like I was at the Sydney Royal Easter Show as I doled out rotisserie cooked garlic chicken to passers by. Additionally, my former boss at the town hall also joined the Shamrock team after he retired, so for the local townspeople it s a brand that everyone can really identify with on a personal level. The family and friendship ties that bind Shamrock together as a brand, are specifically why it s so special because they are symbolic of the sort of warm, rural community that was and is a reality for so many Japanese people, regardless of where they might live today. There truly is nothing like a warm chicken dinner to nourish the heart and mind and remind one of home. Page 2

3 2017 CLAIR Forum Regional Activation On 22 February, CLAIR Sydney and the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Institute for Public Policy and Governance (UTS:IPPG) in cooperation with Junee Shire hosted the 2017 CLAIR Forum. This year s theme was regional activation, which is an important issue in both Australia and Japan. We invited UTS:IPPG Director, Associate Professor Roberta Ryan to act as a facilitator for the forum and UTS:IPPG Professor Lee Pugalis and Mr Matthew Holt, Visitor Economy Officer at City of Wagga Wagga as guest speakers. CLAIR Assistant Directors, Toshiya Komatsu, Motohiro Suzuki, Yu Kawamura, Rina Okamoto and Nanako Shimada delivered presentations focusing on their local government s approach to regional activation. Workshops were also conducted with the attendees. The forum began with a welcome message from Masahisa Yoshimi, the Deputy Director at CLAIR. After that, Prof Roberta Ryan and Cr Robin Asmus, Councillor of Junee Shire, addressed the audience. Before the first session, Mr Yoshimi made introductory remarks and explained the Japanese local government system and issues which Japanese local governments are currently facing. Session 1 The first session was delivered by Prof Lee Pugalis, Mr Toshiya Komatsu and Mr Motohiro Suzuki. Prof Pugalis provided a broad overview of the theme of regional activation in terms of how the dual notions of regions and activation are understood in different geographical, social and international contexts. Australia is promoting the use of City Deals in urban areas to accelerate infrastructure development and population growth, but Professor Pugalis research highlights how deal making is just as applicable in other contexts, such as places experiencing population decline. Therefore, Rural or Regional Deals are advocated to complement the metropolitan focused City Deals. Mr Komatsu who has been despatched from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government explained the cooperation between local governments by citing the example of Tokyo and Yubari. After Yubari city suffered a financial collapse with a debt equivalent to 700 million Australia Dollars, Tokyo declared its support to Yubari. With Tokyo s support came new local initiatives and fresh direction and now Yubari City has paid off more than one third of its debt. Page 3

4 Mr Suzuki presented on Local Revitalisation Officers who work within a grassroots programme structure in response to the issues relating to Japan s aging society and population concentration. This programme invites young people from urban areas to move to the countryside as local government staff members. This is part of a national policy to reactivate regional areas via decentralisation. He also introduced two case studies in Hokkaido. Session 2 The second session was delivered by Mr Matthew Holt, Mr Yu Kawamura, Ms Rina Okamoto and Ms Nanako Shimada. Mr Holt from Wagga Wagga City Council explained the Evocities programme which was launched in Through the implementation of Evocities, Wagga Wagga and other regional cities are raising awareness about the existence of regional cities in NSW through marketing in metropolitan areas. Evocities aims to educate Sydney residents about the existence of regional cities and the benefits of regional city living. Mr Kawamura who has been dispatched from Rokunohe town, a local government of Aomori Prefecture, introduced three relocation support services including free health care for young children, support for young people renting and financial assistance to partially cover the costs associated with buying a new house. In conclusion, he commented on the achievements of these polices. Ms Okamoto talked about local governments collaborating with universities. She introduced major population issues, approaches to combat decreasing population, and provided some examples of activities where her town works together with universities. Ms Shimada talked about the Hometown Tax System, which is a unique donation system for Japanese local governments. It was introduced in 2008 by the Ministry of Internal Affairs as one measure for regional activation and to improve regional disparities. Through this system, people can not only help support their hometown, but also get both tax credits and gifts in return from local governments. She explained that although there are some concerns regarding ethics and transparency, the total number of donations has gradually increased since 2008 and donations have been used effectively for regional activation including rebuilding efforts after the big earthquake in Page 4

5 After each session, we exchanged opinions on each theme with participants and Prof Roberta Ryan from UTS summed up the discussion. We thank all speakers and participants for making this year s forum a great success. Cr Robin Asmus and Ms Nicole Barton, Business Support Officer at Junee Shire Council, gave CLAIR staff a tour of Junee the following day. We visited a nursing home, the Junee Roundhouse Museum and Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory. We learned many things through visiting these places in Junee. We truly appreciate the kind support and hospitality shown by Cr Asmus and Ms Barton in not only supporting us during the forum but also showing us around their lovely shire. The Hobart Yaizu Sister City 40th Anniversary! On 2 February, Hobart City in Tasmania held a commemorative ceremony to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the sister city relationship it has with Yaizu City in Japan. Hobart Lord Mayor Sue Hickey and Yaizu City Mayor Hiromichi Nakano expressed their deep gratitude to everyone who contributed to the relationship in the past 40 years. Both cities signed a Sister City Reaffirmation document to deepen their ties. The Japanese Mini Summer Festival was held at the waterside pavilion the following day. CLAIR Sydney supported a Yaizu booth, which promoted tourism to Yaizu City. The Yaizu Hobart sister city relationship attracted many visitors to the festival. Page 5

6 Osaka, Kobe and Sakai City Opinion Exchange On 6 February, government officials from Osaka City, Kobe City and Sakai City visited our office and we exchanged ideas and information about the travel market to Japan in Australia. They participated in the travel expo held at Sydney Olympic park and visited several travel agencies around Sydney to promote sightseeing in their areas. By proposing plans for a three city circular tour, they are attempting to get travelers to stay in the region for a longer time. These three cities will continue to cooperate in promoting their region. Ehime prefecture Opinion Exchange On 6 February, Ehime prefectural government officials visited our office and we exchanged ideas and information about the Japanese produce and travel market to Japan in Australia. Ehime prefecture is known for Iyokan, which is a type of the Page 6 Japanese citrus. Recently, Japanese citrus fruits including Yuzu are becoming popular in urban areas in Australia. We hope Ehime prefecture s Iyokan promotional activities are fruitful (excuse the pun!) and we wish them all the best. Supporting Okayama prefecture On 8 February, government officials from Okayama prefecture visited our office and we exchanged ideas and information about sister city relationships between Japan and Australia. Okayama prefecture and South Australia have had been sister states since May In 2018, this relationship will mark its 25th anniversary. Page 6

7 Officials from Okayama prefecture visited Adelaide and Sydney to deal with some details for the upcoming 25th anniversary event. CLAIR Sydney will continue to support these activities! Supporting Sanda City On 13 February, Sanda City Society of Commerce and Industry visited our office and we exchanged ideas and information about Japanese produce and economic conditions in Australia. They also visited the City of Blue Mountains which has a sister city relationship with Sanda City to explore the possibility of economic exchange. However, as the City of Blue Mountains doesn t have specialty goods, it is difficult for them to engage in this type of trade. Recently, Japanese food and beverages have become increasingly popular in urban areas of Australia. We hope Sanda City Society of Commerce and Industry promotional activities go well and we wish them all the best. Multicultural Study Tour Preparation On 6 and 7 February, CLAIR Sydney staff visited a number of organisations in Melbourne that deal with multiculturalism policy and support (AMES Australia, Monash Univ. Asia Institute, Huntingdale Primary School, and Great Dangdenong City Library) to talk about the possibility of collaborating in our next multicultural study tour. We have always held these study tours in Sydney to help Japanese LG officers learn more about advanced multicultural policies in Australia, but we hope to hold next year s study tour in Melbourne for the first time ever. Page 7

8 CLAIR Forum Magazine Interviews From 1 to 3 of February, staff of CLAIR Sydney visited Auckland in New Zealand and conducted research on the liveability of Auckland City. Auckland was ranked number 8 in the world cities liveability rankings by the Economist Intelligence Unit in The city established the Auckland Plan to build the most liveable city in the world. CLAIR Sydney interviewed Prof Haarhoff of the University of Auckland and Auckland City council. We will publish the result of this research in the April issue of our monthly magazine CLAIR Forum (in Japanese). JETAA Western Australia receives Foreign Minister s Commendation Award On 23 February, JETAA Western Australia was presented with the Foreign Minister s Commendation Award for the 2016 financial year and a ceremony to celebrate this was held at the residence of the Consul General of Japan in Perth along with a reception for the new JET returnees. JETAA Western Australia is actively involved in the Perth Japan Festival, the World of Food Festival and many of their own events, all of which have been very well received. CLAIR Sydney attended the ceremony and conveyed a congratulatory message from Mr Tamotsu Okamoto, the Chairperson of the Board of Directors at CLAIR. We hope the number of activities at JETAA Western Australia continues to increase and the ties between our two countries further strengthen as a result. Congratulations! Page 8

9 Farewell Messages Our Deputy Director Masahisa Yoshimi and Assistant Director Tomohiro Koike are leaving Sydney at the end of March to take up their new roles back in Japan. I have made a lot of wonderful memories working abroad for the first time here in Sydney, Australia and in New Zealand. I have had the amazing opportunity of collaborating with incredibly hard working and friendly local government Mayors, Councilors and officials, cheerful and energetic JETAA members, intellectual and directive professors and scholars, friendly members of the Masahisa Yoshimi Sydney Nagoya Sister City Committee, Deputy Director from Nagoya City, Aichi prefecture affable residents and tourists and cooperative colleagues. I have also enjoyed the many cuisines available in Sydney such as chewy steaks with mushroom sauce and mashed potato, fresh oysters, my favorite Bondi Burger, seafood (though fish and chips is too oily for me), pasta, lovely sweet cappuccinos and Japanese sushi (sometimes it felt too expensive for me to have). Not only was I surrounded by amazing people and food, I also got to experience the stunning wild life of the region such as seeing kiwis, ibises, black tailed gulls, penguins, koalas, kangaroos and exploring natural spas, brilliant shiny beaches and mysterious geographical features like caves. Thank you for always helping me when I was in need and for always being there to support me and lend a helping hand. I will always cherish the time I spent and the memories I share with all here in Australia and New Zealand. I will go back to Nagoya as a city official and will continue to strive for excellence in our sister city relationship with Sydney and do my best to act as a bridge between Australia, New Zealand and Japan. Farewell and good bye to all the very special friends I ve made who will never be forgotten. Until we meet again! Page 9

10 Hello everyone, I will return to Japan at the end of this month. As a staff member of the Sydney office for two years from April 2015, I was in charge of the JET program and sister city exchanges between Japan and Australia/New Zealand. Thank you very much for your support during this period. I have had many great experiences during my stay in Sydney. In my role with the JET program, I have met people who were successful in their application and were about to Tomohiro Koike make the move to Japan and also JET returnees. Their Assistant Director from interest in Japan and Japanese culture is amazing and Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications the memories they created over the course of the programme are invaluable. As for my involvement with sister cities, I had the opportunity to participate in many commemorative events and heard a lot about the desire of locals to work and live overseas. I also had the great opportunity as a Japanese public servant to do an internship in Invercargill City in NZ where I learned about the council s work in community service, tourism policy and industrial promotion. Although, I will be returning to Japan, I strongly hope I will help build a cultural bridge between Australia/New Zealand and Japan. Once again, many thanks for your warm assistance, support and guidance. From the Director 17 School Administration A Year of Local Governments in Japan In Japan, March is the end of the financial and school years. Graduates have a ceremony upon graduating from their schools and students progressively move up one year higher. The Japanese school system is six years for elementary (primary) school (Years 1-6), three years for junior high school (Years 7-9), three years for senior high school (Years 10-12) and four years or more for university. Every child who is six as of April 1 must enter elementary school in their district, which starts in April. Elementary and junior high school are compulsory and nearly all students (about 96%) go on to senior high school. Page 10

11 Compulsory school administration is a complex affair. Elementary and junior high schools themselves are founded by each respective municipality. Municipalities must construct school buildings and the necessary facilities with central government grants. Interestingly though, teachers are employed by prefectural governments and some are then sent to municipality s schools, because many municipalities cannot afford to employ them. Although they are prefectural government employees, a third of their salaries actually come from central government grants (there are over a million public school teachers and they account for 37 per cent of all local government employees in Japan). From the start of this 2017 financial year, the task of employing school teachers will be entrusted to twenty large cities. This coincides with a transfer of a portion of local residential income tax from prefectures to these cities. It will make school administration simpler and responsibilities for both infrastructure and teachers will now be merged together in these large cities. It is one of the most significant decentralisation reforms in recent years. Katsunori Kamibo Director Page 11