After working for three years as a Regional Development Cooperation Volunteer at “Ota no Sato,” which aims to promote exchange and community revitalization among residents living in the Ota area, I have expanded my activities as a community support worker, also at “Ota no Sato. In this interview, we asked Ms. Taniguchi, who has decided to continue working with the people of Ota after her term as a member of the Regional Development Cooperation Volunteers ends, about the changes that have taken place since her time as a cooperative worker and her current lifestyle.

Working with local people to think about the present and future of the community as a community support worker

-What are you doing now that you have finished your work as a member of the Japan Community Development Cooperation Volunteers?

Actually, I am doing something completely different from what I did when I was a cooperative worker. I am now working as a community support worker, which is a job that should be done by someone who is familiar with the community, but I was asked by a community member to become a community support worker. The cooperative members do various things to develop the community with the aim of revitalizing it, but the job of a support worker is to determine how to continue the community, so I feel that this is a job that I can pursue on a deeper level. Well, one of the things is that it’s no longer just about what I do. My work is diverse: administrative work related to agriculture, welfare programs, visiting elderly people in their homes alone, and organizing issues in the community! My office work has increased, but so has my outside work, and it’s interesting.

-So you have more work?

More work. That’s right (laughs). I also moved here to live. I used to live in Katsuura, but I decided to move here to do this job. Then I decided that this job was right for me. I have more opportunities to talk with people in the community on a regular basis, and I can see good insights and issues. My goal is to provide support that is close to the people, so I am glad to have lived here.

In addition, I have started to work on community welfare a little bit at a time. We have been working on a program of handing down the traditions since I was a member of the Regional Development Cooperation Volunteer Corps. This time, we have made a more concrete effort to create an opportunity for the parents of elementary school children to get involved with their children and the local community, by making astringent persimmons, making Nagashi Somen (flowing noodles), and various other activities as part of the summer vacation program. We asked local grandfathers to teach their skills to the children, and together we went out to cut bamboo. And, at a recent welfare program, we had a rope-making competition in which the grandmothers weaved a rope over 7 meters long in 15 minutes. They seemed to enjoy doing a task that had been ingrained in their hands for so long, and they would say things like, “I’ll teach you how to make sandals next time,” or “We’re the only ones who can do this. These spilled words are a treasure! I believe that the accumulation of these words will lead to the continuation of the project.

Thoughts on the “Kahori Box,” an assortment of Ota’s food, and challenges for the future

-I think there is a “Kahori Box” with an assortment of Ota’s vegetables, can you tell us about it?

Originally, about three years ago, a farmer said to me, “Mami, I’d like to make a box with a little assortment of everyone’s vegetables.” I said, “Ok, I understand! Let’s do it!“ We made an assortment with the farmer, but what should we name it? What should we name it? As we talked about it, we named it “Ota no kahori bako” (Ota’s fragrance box) so that the fragrance of Ota would be conveyed to everyone when they opened the box. We call the fragrance “Kahori” over here.

It is the work of Ota’s producers and the people who make processed products. I think of it as a “romance box” that contains everyone’s thoughts in one box. They are quite appreciated. After leaving Ota, people live in Tokyo, Hokkaido, and other places, don’t they? When people who have left their hometowns open Ota’s Kahori Box and see the names of the producers, their faces come to mind. “I’m so happy to know that these vegetables are from this person.“ “Oh, I miss him so much. I haven’t heard from him in a while.“ And so on. I want people who have left Ota to feel Ota. But little by little, we are receiving orders from people outside of Ota. We will deliver the fragrance of Ota to you.

-What are the standards and specifications for the vegetables in the “Kahori Box”?

Does that mean A vegetables or B vegetables? I don’t specify anything to the farmers. But the farmers will ship A vegetables at their discretion, and they bring me B and C as extras, but that’s the challenge. For example, there is the “Kahori Box” in Ota, for which I planted seeds. Of course there are other places to ship, right? I think they calculate that number and plant them. We are now talking about what we should do with the B and C plants that didn’t make it in there. I am also thinking about it.

Some people who are not farmers think that what is sold in the supermarket is just buried in the ground. They don’t know that they are uneven. But I think that irregularity is the charm of vegetables. For example, there are daikon radishes that have a stone in the middle of the root and are split in two. Or Chinese cabbage with a split in the plant. I think it is normal to sell vegetables in their original form, or something like that. I think we need to think about how to communicate this to the public.

Looking for ideas that will make both farmers and customers happy.

-What is in the assortment?

There are nine vegetables in this year’s assortment. Radish, spinach, carrots, taro, sweet potatoes, cabbage, green beans, sunny lettuce, and Chinese cabbage. There were also green onions! Then there was miso paste from Ohatsu, strawberry jam, a kilo of rice, and rice bread. An amazing amount. I was worried that the lid of the box might have been busted open because I closed the lid where it wouldn’t close, but it was fine. I was afraid the bread wouldn’t cushion it, but it was delivered fluffy. (laughs). As we made the bread in this way, local residents came up with the treasured idea of including pickles in the bread. This made me very happy.

-Do you have any goals you are aiming for through “Kahori Bako”?

I would be happy if it is made by independent production even if I am out of the picture. It’s not about creating charm, but I think it would be interesting if a lot of such products are born, although there is a search for them. I think the “Kahori Bako” will continue, but wouldn’t it be really interesting if each farmer did something like that? It would be interesting to have more choices, like “I’ll use that place’s box next time.“ In the big picture, the goal is to increase the number of farmers here. It would be easier if the goal for new farmers is to see that this kind of thing is possible. Instead of wondering what to sell to, they can say, “Oh, there’s another way.“
If it becomes that way, it would be good, wouldn’t it?

-Are there young farmers?

We have farmers in their 30s and up. But there are farmers in the third grade of elementary school. During long vacations, they would pick all kinds of vegetables, wash them, pack them in bags, and sell them at the farmers’ market. They said they got quite a bit of pocket money. When I asked them, “What do you do with the money?“ They said, “I’m going to buy the next crop of seeds. Isn’t that amazing?

Finding the local interest wherever you go.

-You have moved to Ota from near the sea in Katsuura, are you enjoying life in Ota to the fullest? I feel like my work place is close by, so my scope of activities might be limited, but I don’t know.

I enjoy it to the fullest. Children from the community often come to my house. And people from the community come too. It might be like a community center (laughs). Everyone comes and lets loose. That’s the kind of house we have. I don’t know anyone in my house who can be so relaxed. Even if they live alone, they are alone once in a while. We watch movies together, have bonfires, and have fun. When I lived in Katsuura, a fisherman would ask me on his way to work, “Do you want a sea bream?“ The fisherman would give it to me while I was on my way to work. He would put it in a bag, raw. Here, when you open the door of your house, you will find vegetables sitting on the floor. It’s interesting, isn’t it? Like, “Whose are they?“ I wonder (laughs).

I don’t have a limited range of activities, it’s in my nature. But this one is good here. It’s a little bit different world from Katsuura. The humidity is probably different, too. There is no oceanic bullying, and the fog is amazing. I think this is the best place to feel the nature of the mountains. Astronomical observation is great. We put our beds in the garden and watch shooting stars together. I’m starting to check out meteor showers.

-You find ways to enjoy each place you go, don’t you? Have your eating habits changed?

Even in the desert, I’m enjoying myself, I think (laughs). (Laughs.) My eating habits have also changed a lot. In Katsuura, I often went out to the town, and here, vegetables are the main food. I also started making a lot of processed or preserved foods. I also started to make a lot of processed foods, or preserved foods. I grow vegetables in the field, and I’m currently planting chili peppers, herbs, snap peas, radishes, turnips, sunny lettuce, and things like that.

I used to work in the garden, but now my garden is a field, so I pick things from the field and put them in while I’m cooking. The range of food-related challenges has increased, hasn’t it? In Katsuura, there was a huge range of fun, but here the food is more interesting. I have made craft colas, tried my hand at condiments and Chinese herbs, and so on.

-You really have fun in every part of it.

You have fun, you win (laughs).