Keiichiro Yamashita
(Ikeda Town in Miyoshi City)

Koyatoko district is located in Nishiyama of Ikeda town, a small village in the mountains above JR Tsubojiri station known as an unexplored station.

Mr.Keiichiro Yamashita decided to quit the company he had been working for and take over his family's farming business in 2020.

His family grows mainly fruit, tomatoes, and sweet potatoes.

They harvest tomatoes from summer to fall; in winter, they use the sweet potatoes harvested in fall to make dried sweet potatoes. Tomato plastic greenhouses are covered with finely chopped Kaya as a fertilizer.

The harvested tomatoes are shipped to local farmers' markets and supermarkets.

They are busy processing dried sweet potatoes from December to March during winter.

The sweet potatoes they cultivate are called "Himeayaka," characterized by their sweet and moist texture.

Sweet potatoes cooked over a wood fire are individually peeled with a knife, cut into long and thin slices, and dried in the sun.

Everything is done by hand, and no dryer is used.

His dried sweet potatoes have a good reputation for excellent taste at local product markets and are available on online shopping.

Mr. Yamashita said, "It is hard work every day with all the different tasks," but simultaneously, "It is a joy to work with my family."