AineRy Brand Story SDGs Initiatives through Ryukyu Indigo
Since I started growing Ryukyu indigo, there have been many problems and things I didn't understand about farming methods and manufacturing methods.
Because there is no academic basis, it cannot be explained, and it has been manufactured by a method that has been handed down orally for a long time.
There are many parts that are not known about the method and ingredients of indigo dyeing, and in order to produce in large quantities, it is necessary to grasp the ecology and ingredients to create farming methods and quality standards.
When I consulted with a professor in the Department of Applied Microbiology at the University of the Ryukyus, he became interested and we decided to collaborate on research.
At that time, I told him that I did not know about farming methods and ecology, and at the same time consulted with a professor of the Faculty of Agriculture, and we are conducting joint research in the fields of farming methods and applied microorganisms.
Acquisition of abandoned farmland
We had asked a farmer who manufactures Ryukyu indigo to dye it, but we felt a sense of crisis about the industry that was shrinking one after another due to salt from successive typhoons, a shortage of successors, and the retirement of production farmers, and in 2015, we contracted 6.000 tsubo (19.000 square meters) of abandoned farmland in Higashimura, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa Prefecture to produce Ryukyu indigo.
From the state of abandoned farmland, Ryukyu indigo fields, Ryukyu indigo dye manufacturing, and is a one-of-a-kind denim brand.
Currently, we are promoting the project with designer Yoshinari Kazu and other designers, including supporters from the University of the Ryukyus and outside the prefecture.