Sweet Potatoes and Justice

This series follows Dentsu Inc. 'Company Design' team as they uncover the secrets behind 'vibrant companies' with 'originality.' In the 22nd installment, we introduce the challenges of Kushima Aoi Farm, which cultivates sweet potatoes on farmland roughly the size of ten Tokyo Domes in Kushima City, located at the southern tip of Miyazaki Prefecture.

What images come to mind when you hear the words "agriculture" or "farm"? Japan's traditional landscape? Simple and warm? The smell of soil, the sun's blessings? Yet also a tough workplace, vulnerable to weather and lacking young workers? Many words come to mind. But ask someone what color or shape sweet potato leaves are, or when sweet potatoes are in season, and they might stumble for words.

Before the interview, I reviewed various materials. To be honest, I realized I truly knew almost nothing. I felt ashamed that, while I prided myself on being obsessed with roasted sweet potatoes, I had never really paid attention to the sweet potato itself.

Chairman Makoto Ikeda consistently champions the phrase "strong agriculture." We often hear about "strong management" or "strong business." The talk is about advancing IT integration and fundamentally transforming outdated management structures. Before this interview, I couldn't connect that kind of "strength" with "sweet potato farming in the tranquil regions of Kyushu." Knowing full well my own lack of knowledge, I asked Chairman Ikeda: "What exactly is 'strong agriculture'?" "What are the 'strengths' of sweet potatoes?" Encouraged by the saying, "Better to ask and be embarrassed for a moment than to remain ignorant forever."

Written by: Yumi Hagiwara (Dentsu Kyushu Inc.)

Kushima Aoi Farm Co., Ltd.: Incorporated in December 2013. Headquartered in Kushima City, Miyazaki Prefecture, this agricultural corporation handles the entire process of sweet potato production, processing, and sales. Guided by the management philosophy "Strong agriculture transcends boundaries," it aims to become the world's leading sweet potato company, enriching (bringing prosperity and happiness to) everyone involved, transcending eras, generations, and the world.

We'll show you what it means to be a farmer

"We are farmers," Chairman Ikeda begins. "Generations of us. We take pride in that." Agricultural reform and IT companies revolutionizing farming are often highlighted in the media. The narrative suggests that "reviving neglected fields and achieving direct-from-producer logistics will open the future." "Of course, those efforts are important. But we are farmers. We watch over our fields daily and treat the harvested sweet potatoes as if they were our own children. The number of producers who respond to that sentiment is gradually increasing. That, above all, makes us happy."

Chairman Ikeda's words flowed freely. "Making a profit in our business is simple. Essentially, you just squeeze farmers to lower production costs and then sell it at a high price. But that just leads to everyone becoming exhausted and worn down, right? And people living in the city wouldn't want to eat such low-quality sweet potatoes either, would they? This is, well, a matter of farmers' pride."

Seeing Chairman Ikeda speak with such a smile, all the questions I'd prepared vanished instantly.

Makoto Ikeda: Chairman and CEO of Kushima Aoi Farm Co., Ltd. After graduating high school, he left his hometown to work elsewhere. At age 23, his father's illness forced him to take over the family business. He reluctantly continued farming, which he disliked, simply to make a living. Kushima City in Miyazaki Prefecture is a small city centered on primary industries, a typical depopulated area where young people migrate to urban centers. Harboring frustration toward a community seemingly uninterested in changing this reality, he reached his 40th birthday and thought, "My father passed away at 52, so I might only have about 10 years left myself. Is it really okay to keep dragging myself through farming I hate?" He then resolved to transform Japanese agriculture entirely through his own efforts. In 2013, he incorporated his company, setting his sights on the global expansion of sweet potatoes.

Chairman Ikeda's comments are backed by figures. In a rural area of Miyazaki with a population of about 16,000, on farmland equivalent to 10 Tokyo Domes, they achieve sales of nearly 2 billion yen, with 20% to 30% exported overseas. It's only in the last five or six years that sweet potatoes have become a year-round staple on supermarket shelves.

Production cannot keep up with sweet potato demand

The most striking figure he mentioned was the observation that "production cannot keep up with the demand for sweet potatoes (in Japan)." "Government estimates indicate an annual demand of 800,000 tons of sweet potatoes. However, the actual production is only 630,000 tons." Hearing figures like "hundreds of thousands of tons" doesn't really sink in. Perhaps reading my expression, Chairman Ikeda shared this insight: "For example, some of the sweet potatoes used in processed foods you often see or in restaurants are actually from China or Vietnam."

"Don't you think sweet potatoes are the kind of thing that just grow on their own once you plant the seed potatoes?" Chairman Ikeda asked me. "That's not the case. Sweet potatoes are a very labor-intensive vegetable that requires manual work and is difficult to automate with IoT. That's why we're not seeing more new farmers entering the field, and sweet potato farmers are decreasing. Doesn't just hearing this make you think, 'Oh, we really need to do something about this'?"

I immediately wanted to go to the supermarket and buy sweet potatoes. I remembered what he said earlier: the very fact that sweet potatoes are available year-round at supermarkets is itself the challenge Kushima Aoi Farm is tackling.

The farm cultivates 47 hectares (roughly 10 Tokyo Domes), contracts with 182 farmers, and handles 8,250 tons annually. (As of July 2022)

Are sweet potatoes "uncool"?

I asked Chairman Ikeda about the appeal of sweet potatoes. Naturally, his answer flowed endlessly. "Simply put, it's a vegetable that needs no seasoning. Not even salt. Just roast or steam them. And they're highly nutritious too. Some even say that with milk and sweet potatoes, you can get all the nutrients a person needs to live. As a root vegetable, it's resilient to wind and water damage. It can be grown in poor soil and stores well long-term. To me, it's the perfect vegetable."

After this story, Chairman Ikeda uttered something unexpected. "But honestly, sweet potatoes were kind of uncool until recently. Women felt a bit embarrassed to pick them up."

I thought, what an unpretentious person. As someone involved in advertising, I tend to want to eliminate negative elements and only highlight the good points. "But don't you think that 'uncool' aspect is part of the sweet potato's charm? There's no guilt associated with the sweetness of sweet potatoes. Especially for women, you like sweet cakes, right? But there's guilt there. Like, 'I gave in to temptation and ate cake.' Sweet potatoes don't have that. Plus, they're good for your gut. Don't you think it's a shame to eat such an amazing vegetable while feeling embarrassed?"

Aoi Haruka: The sweet potato variety "Beni Haruka" is a brand developed through Kushima Aoi Farm's meticulous cultivation and storage techniques. It's a sweet potato worthy of bearing the company name "Aoi." It boasts a rich, creamy sweetness and a soft, honey-like texture on the tongue. Chairman Ikeda proudly proclaims it has "the deliciousness of a perfectly crafted Japanese confection."

Negative perceptions exist about agriculture, farmers, and sweet potatoes. He doesn't deny that at all. On top of that, Chairman Ikeda says he wants to convey the appeal of these sweet potatoes to as many people as possible. "This one's a good guy. I guess it's like, 'Understand how good it is.' For that, I'm willing to take the lead and do whatever it takes, even if it means being the poster boy." The true meaning behind the "strength" in Chairman Ikeda's vision of "strong agriculture" gradually became clear.

Don't sneak around. Don't fret.

To achieve this, Chairman Ikeda emphasizes the importance of "not sneaking around." "We make our living selling vegetables like sweet potatoes, which have a somewhat embarrassing image. We even collect and sell small potatoes that used to be discarded in the fields. With that kind of self-deprecating mindset, no one can be happy, right? Not the producers, not the consumers, and certainly not us in between. I love sweet potatoes. My passion for them is unmatched, and if asked to talk about their appeal, I could go on forever."

Chairman Ikeda's passion has definitely spread to other producers. The same goes for employees. People with backgrounds completely unrelated to farming—people from different fields—have been charmed by sweet potatoes and somehow ended up standing in Miyazaki's sweet potato fields. "In a way, I'm a rebel. When people ask me, 'What are you going to do growing sweet potatoes?', it just makes me think, 'Screw that!' and I get fired up (laughs)."

Kushima Aoi Farm has about 100 employees. Though an agricultural corporation, the average age is 34. It gathers people with diverse backgrounds—from former trading company employees who worked overseas to ex-firefighters—regardless of whether they're from within or outside the prefecture.

Beyond just sweet potato production, the company has established joint research programs with universities and focuses on sweet potato research, pursuing diverse, unconventional initiatives. Chairman Ikeda explained the farm's management philosophy simply: "Is it interesting or not? Is it cool or uncool? That's all there is to it. It might sound a bit pretentious, but the decision comes down to: Is it benefiting agriculture or the community? Is there justice in it?"

Kushima Aoi Farm's official character, "Aoi-chan."

Strength is born from confronting weakness

Chairman Ikeda often uses provocative phrases like "rebel" and "strong agriculture," but I couldn't help but ask: "Doesn't that strength come from facing vulnerability head-on?"

"That might be true. When I was young, I was a weak person who faced nothing but setbacks. Farming, my family business, is also in a socially vulnerable position. There are the constraints unique to rural areas. But then, I realized something. It's okay if there are farmers who say idealistic things. I have decent experience growing crops. But I'm not top-tier. There are countless people who can grow sweeter sweet potatoes than me. As a manager, I'm barely halfway there. But remember those perpetual benchwarmers who somehow became team captains back in club days? It's okay to have a business owner like that. That's how I've managed to get by."

But, Chairman Ikeda continues, "My dreams are pretty big, you know. Wouldn't it be interesting and cool if the world's best sweet potato company came from this remote corner of Miyazaki?" The words "champion of justice" and "hero of justice" flashed through my mind.

Kushima Aoi Farm's website is here.

Season 2 of the series where Dentsu Inc.'s 'Company Design' team explores the secrets of 'vibrant companies' with 'originality.' Episode 22 introduced the challenge of Kushima Aoi Farm, which cultivates sweet potatoes on farmland roughly 10 times the size of the Tokyo Dome in Kushima City, at the southern tip of Miyazaki Prefecture.

Season 1 of the series can be found here:
The "Company Design" project site is here:

[Editor's Note]

At the end of the interview, I posed my usual unexpected question to Chairman Ikeda. "Honestly, aren't sweet potatoes heavy? I mean, in terms of weight. For example, things like oil or water are heavy too, right? That such heavy items are supplied so stably feels like something of a miracle, you know?"

Chairman Ikeda's answer was unexpected. "They are heavy, but the real issue is that sweet potatoes are incredibly irregular in shape. That's the tricky part. Think about the vegetables you see at the supermarket. Tomatoes, cucumbers, daikon radishes—they're all reasonably uniform in shape, right? Sweet potatoes just don't work that way. You get big ones, small ones, even twisted ones. Trying to supply them consistently as a product is just a huge hassle. And, as you pointed out, they're heavy. So nobody does it. If nobody's doing it, then I'll do it myself. That's the feeling, I suppose?"

Heavy, and on top of that, irregularly shaped. Exporting them as fresh produce requires enormous effort, like mold prevention. Even so, he staked his life on sweet potatoes. Whether you see Chairman Ikeda's determination as down-to-earth or refreshing is up to the reader.