Yamagata Gov, Female Watermelon Farmers Hold Discussion; Farmers Share Recipes Using Discarded Parts of Fruit

The Yomiuri Shimbun

18:01 JST, August 20, 2025

OBANAZAWA, Yamagata — Yamagata Gov. Mieko Yoshimura recently exchanged views with a group of female farmers in Obanazawa, Yamagata Prefecture, one of Japan’s leading watermelon-producing areas.

The group, called Cocel, was formed in March, and consists of five female watermelon farmers from the city. They work to promote the joy of farming and the appeal of locally produced watermelons.

On July 31, Yoshimura visited their watermelon fields and helped with watermelon harvesting before moving to a cafe in the city for discussions. Cocel leader Mayumi Mitsuga, 42, told Yoshimura that the group introduces recipes on social media for tempura and asazuke, lightly pickled food, cooked using thinned watermelons, which are taken selectively to let others grow bigger.

“I think women are particularly good at coming up with ideas for creating ways to cook [parts that are often discarded]. I hope people will try the recipes,” Mitsuga said. Yoshimura ate keema curry made with thinned watermelons.

“Their perspectives on food education and the idea of cooking using watermelons that have been thinned out are wonderful, and I think that will expand the future of agriculture in Yamagata. The prefecture wants to work together with them to support their efforts,” Yoshimura said.