Kumamoto: Soy Sauce Maker Revived After Disastrous 2020 Flood

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:21 JST, July 20, 2024

HITOYOSHI, Kumamoto — A long-established soy sauce maker in Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto Prefecture, has made a miraculous return to traditional production after its factory was severely damaged by the torrential rains that fell in July 2020.

Founded in 1931, Kamada Jozojo Co. is known for its Marukama brand. Unlike many other soy sauce makers, which purchase yeast from specialized manufacturers, Kamada uses yeast and lactic acid bacteria that live in its own storehouse.

The unique flavor and aroma of Kamada’s products are created by the natural fermentation and maturation of these yeast and lactic acid bacteria in moromi, a fermented mash created by adding saltwater to soy sauce koji (starter) made from soybeans, wheat and koji mold.

However, the company’s storehouse was flooded to a depth of about a meter in the July 2020 rains. With the huge refrigerators and tanks toppled over, undelivered products ended up covered in mud. In that environment, it was difficult for the bacteria to survive in the storehouse, leaving everyone in the company in despair.

The Kumamoto Industrial Research Institute offered its support to save the company. Researchers managed to extract trace amounts of mold from the mud-covered moromi and remove miscellaneous bacteria before conducting repeated cultivation and tests.

It took them three years to identify about 200 types of yeast and 100 types of lactic acid bacteria suitable for producing soy sauce.

In April of this year, they were finally able to make their first post-disaster batch of raw soy sauce, using yeast that they had identified during this process.

“With a fruitier aroma than our pre-flood soy sauce, it exceeded our expectations,” said Kamada Jozojo President Akira Kamada, who at one point had considered closing the business.

The maker hopes to sell the soy sauce to a variety of people in the future.