Mitsubishi Corporation

Press Room

September 28, 2015
Mitsubishi Corporation Disaster Relief Foundation
Akiu Winery

Miyagi’s Only Wine-Maker Starts Operations in Sendai

Akiu Winery, Miyagi Prefecture’s only wine maker, today commemorates the completion of its wine making facilities in Sendai City. Located in the Akiu in the city’s Taihaku Ward, the winery was built with 50 million yen in support from the Mitsubishi Corporation Disaster Relief Foundation (MCDRF). The funds provided by MCDRF complement support already received from The 77 Bank Ltd., a local financial institution. Production starts tomorrow September 29, with the first batches of wine and cider scheduled for delivery in February 2015.
 
As the prefecture’s only wine and cider maker, Akiu Winery will make use of flavorful grapes grown locally in Kesennuma and other areas of Tohoku to produce wine, while cider will be made from apples grown in nearby Watari and other areas around Sendai. Adding grapes cultivated by Akiu Winery itself from 2016, the target is to produce 29,000 bottles of wine and 7,000 bottles of cider amounting to 74 million yen in sales per annum by 2021.
 
Besides wine and cider production and sales, Akiu Winery will set up facilities for vineyard tours and host wine-tasting and wine culture education events and seminars. These added attractions stand to foster greater appreciation among local residents for wine while boosting Miyagi’s tourist and visitor numbers. Not only will this initiative serve as an important driver in the region’s tourism industry, but through proactive efforts to utilize fruit products from Miyagi and from across the rest of the Tohoku region, the project will also be helping to develop greater synergies between local production and industry and the region’s tourism product and its people. In this way, the project will play an important role in the recovery of industry in areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 2011.
 
Going forward, Akiu Winery plans to transform itself into a hands-on learning center for setting up and managing wine-making operations, including hosting training seminars for this purpose and providing support to new wine-making enterprises. This is a reflection of the company’s assessment that wine-making carries potential for growth as the prefecture seeks to develop its ‘sixth industry’ sector, and forms part of its strategy for providing more sales outlets for local produce. The move will simultaneously encourage the use of abandoned farmland and create employment, thereby contributing to overall revitalization in the region.
                     
MCDRF sees its support to Akiu Winery as part its larger social contribution initiative aimed at providing support for the recovery of agriculture and tourism as well employment generation in Miyagi and other prefectures affected by the 2011 disasters.
 
Four and a half years have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami, but coastal areas of northeastern Japan that suffered severe damage are still on the way to recovery. MCDRF will continue to collaborate with local financial institutions such as The 77 Bank to support initiatives that stand to make an important contribution to the recovery of industry and employment creation and to overall revitalization in the region.
Reference Information
 
Outline of Akiu Winery’s Facilities
1.      Headquarters:                 Yumoto Aza Biwa Haranichi Akiu-cho, Taihaku-ku, Sendai-shi,
Miyagi, Japan
2.      Floor Area:                      2,336 m²
3.      Operations Start Date:    September 29, 2015
4.      Production Capacity:       Approx. 27,000 liters per annum
 
Akiu Winery (Company Information)
1.      Headquarters:                 Yumoto Aza Biwa Haranichi Akiu-cho, Taihaku-ku, Sendai-shi, Miyagi, Japan
2.      Established:                    March 2014
3.      Capital:                           2.4 million yen
4.      Business:                        Grape farming; production of fruit wines and beverages
5.      Representative:              Chikafusa Mouri, CEO
 
About Mitsubishi Corporation Disaster Relief Foundation
1.      Headquarters:                 2-3-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
2.      Founded:                        March 2012
3.      Purpose:                         To contribute to the recovery of regions affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake through the provision of scholarships and grants for NPOs and social welfare corporations, as well as for recovery of industry and job creation.
4.      Representatives:            - Chairman, Ken Kobayashi (President and CEO, Mitsubishi Corporation)
                                                - Deputy Chairman, Yasuhito Hirota (Executive Vice President, Mitsubishi Corporation)
                                                - Executive Director, Yoshiyuki Nojima (General Manager, CSR and Environmental Affairs Department, Mitsubishi Corporation)
 

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