北村 翔(写真左)
キタムラショウ Sho Kitamura
Born in Uji, Kyoto, as the 15th generation of a tea farmer who has been in business for 300 years, he has an estimated 300-year-old tea tree that has been passed down from generation to generation, but he has not been able to make it shine on his own, and he has never been able to gain a perspective on how to make use of its value. So I met Akimi Matsuo of the tea aroma garden in Omuta City, Fukuoka Prefecture, who is currently working on the Japan tea business together. I learned about the joy of the world of Japan tea, changed my values about Japan tea 180 degrees, and before I knew it, I was starting a business in Omuta City, Fukuoka Prefecture. My parents manage the tea plantations in Uji, and I am working with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to deliver "tea education" to children who will lead the future in order to preserve Japan's tea culture to future generations, while becoming a bridge between Kyoto and Uji and Kyushu.