Potatoes are from Hodogaya

Potatoes were introduced to Hodogaya Ward at the end of the Edo period.

The potato frog potatoes brought from Koshu (Yamanashi Prefecture) were initially cultivated for private use, but as cultivation methods were improved and research at the agricultural laboratory in the prefecture in Hodogaya Ward progressed, production became more active.

Hodogaya Imo, which is now grown in Asahi Ward, Seya Ward and Minami Ward, was shipped from Hodogaya Station to Hokkaido and other countries, and became famous as a good quality seed potato. The potatoes from all over Japan that you eat may have grown from the old "Hodogaya Imo" shipped.

In the Meiji era, the price of potatoes had fallen, but as a remedy, the starch (Kata starch) manufacturing, a processed product that makes use of potatoes, became popular. It became an important industry in the Meiji era, such as being sold to Odawara as a material for Kamaboko.

After the war, the production of potatoes themselves decreased due to the effects of urbanization. However, even today, there is still the second largest crop produced in the ward after cabbage.

Imobori, which was a great success

Potatoes are useful ingredients that can be used for a variety of dishes. In terms of nutrition, it is rich in potassium and vitamin C, and it is also characterized by the fact that vitamin C, which is fragile when heated, is difficult to break with potatoes.

At Hodogaya Ward, we made efforts to get familiar with such excellent ingredients.

In June 2003, potato digging was carried out in a field near Nishiya Station. A total of 204 participants gathered through the open call for participants and sweated in the harvest while covered in the soil in a spacious field.

Before digging the potatoes, Mr. Shirai, a producer, talked about the history of potatoes and how to grow them, and freshly boiled potatoes were served, and participants heard a voice saying `` replacement! '' Was.