At Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School, there is a group called Kasa SHOP, which is made up of volunteer students and teachers, rather than club activities or student council activities.
The Kasa SHOP Research Team has completed a craft cola made with locally produced daidai after more than a year of development, called Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!.
A press conference was held to announce the new product craft cola, which was later registered as a return gift for Kasaoka City's hometown tax donation.
This marks the beginning of the craft cola story, mixed with the hopes, setbacks, and efforts of high school students.
The information in this article is current as of January 2025, when it was published. Please note that it may differ from the current situation.
New Product Announcement Conference for Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!
First, let's look back at the craft cola announcement conference held on September 10, 2024, at the 2nd floor large conference room of the Kasaoka City Hall Branch No. 4 in Okayama Prefecture.
After the members of the Kasa SHOP Research Team (all third-year students at the time of the September 2024 announcement conference) and the supporting teachers, Azuma Yoshinobu and Principal Akaiwa Yasuhiro of Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School, prepared for the announcement conference, it began.
Start of the New Product Announcement Conference
The conference was hosted by Yabe Mio, the vice president of the Kasa SHOP Research Team, and Yamamoto Manami from the craft club.
First, Sadaoka Anna, the president of the Kasa SHOP Research Team, greeted the attendees as the organizer of the new product announcement conference.
“Thank you very much for gathering today for the announcement conference of the new product craft cola developed by us, the Kasa SHOP Research Team, despite your busy schedules.
We have been working on this project since April 2024 with the desire to commercialize the cola we presented at last year's business contest. Finally, it is completed, and we are pleased to present it today. Thank you for your attention.”
Principal Akaiwa then gave his greeting.
“In this hot weather, the students have been passionately engaged in product development.
Please listen to the students' passionate feelings towards their product and towards our local Kasaoka. The students have passion. Please hear that passion as well. Thank you.”
I also observed the students making the craft cola concentrate during the summer vacation. I remember feeling their seriousness as they worked hard in the heat.
Introduction of the New Product Craft Cola "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!"
The craft cola unveiled at the new product announcement conference was named Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!.
This craft cola uses "daidai" from Kitagi-shima in Kasaoka City. The volume is 200mL, and the price is 550 yen including tax.
Initially, it is limited to 500 bottles.
Next, explanations about the label design and features of the craft cola "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" will follow.
Label Design of "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!"
Regarding the label design, the design department head, Matsui Tenka, provided the details.
For the label design, a logo inspired by daidai is placed in the center, with the upper part representing the sky and the lower part representing the sea, creating a sense of depth.
The product's catchphrase is “The sweet and slightly bitter taste of youth.”
It expresses the taste of the craft cola and the image of youth of those who developed it.
The label design of "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" was created by the design team members of the research team with advice from Yamamoto Chikafumi from Kasaoka City Community Revitalization Cooperator.
Features of "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!"
The explanation of the features of the craft cola "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" is provided by the craft department head, Baba Ayano.
The craft cola is made using daidai from Kasaoka and is described as “a miraculous cup where acidity, bitterness, and sweetness are perfectly matched.”
The craft cola concentrate is produced at Kitchen Lab 101, led by Kondo Koji, who works as a food coordinator and is part of Kasaoka City Community Revitalization Cooperator. The process of filling the concentrate with carbonated water is entrusted to Kurashiki Kosen Co., Ltd.
Once the bottles filled with carbonated water are completed, the members of the Kasa SHOP Research Team label them, and they are finished.
Towards "The Town of Daidai, Kasaoka"
The daidai used in the craft cola "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" is said to be planted in every household on Kitagi-shima in Kasaoka City, used in the same way as squeezing lemon.
Focusing on that daidai, the members of the Kasa SHOP Research Team created the craft cola.
The Kasa SHOP Research Team expresses their desire to promote Kasaoka City as the “Town of Daidai.”
This concludes the content of the craft cola announcement conference held on September 10, 2024.
"Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" has started selling as a product filled with the enthusiasm and creativity of the Kasa SHOP Research Team.
Towards the Completion of "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!"
I spoke with the representatives of the research team, Sadaoka Anna, vice president Yabe Mio, and treasurer Moriya Hinako, about the journey to complete "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" and future developments.
The development of "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" was filled with challenges. How did they manage to reach product completion?
The opportunity to develop craft cola using daidai came from an experience during a visit to Kitagi-shima in Kasaoka City.
From Encountering Daidai from Kitagi-shima to Development
I heard from a local resident on Kitagi-shima that “it is common to squeeze daidai over oysters,” and I became very interested in using daidai instead of lemon, which was the beginning of everything.
The members of the research team then began to think, “Can we create something new using daidai?” and explored various ideas.
Using a tool called a realization sheet, they exchanged ideas with local businesses and members of the research team, resulting in proposals for bath additives, perfumes, cooking, sweets, and beverages.
Ultimately, they decided to create a new beverage product using daidai from Kitagi-shima, but differentiating it from competing citrus fruits like lemon and yuzu was a significant challenge.
To overcome this challenge, they researched beverages made with citrus fruits and accidentally discovered the existence of “craft cola” on the internet.
Upon learning that craft cola primarily uses citrus fruits, the members of the research team made a significant discovery.
That was the fact that “there is no craft cola made with daidai yet.”
They felt the potential for differentiation from other craft colas and decided to pursue the development of craft cola using daidai.
Crisis of Development Halt Due to Unsatisfactory Taste of Prototype
The serious development by the research team began around April 2023, with the cooperation of Yamamoto Chikafumi from Kasaoka City Community Revitalization Cooperator.
Yamamoto has experience working at an advertising agency and has been involved in many event operations and product planning and development for companies in Tokyo.
Based on this experience, he is engaged in community revitalization projects.
The development team first repeated the prototyping of craft cola concentrate while adjusting spices and sugar. The prototypes were developed solely by the students.
The first prototype was “not drinkable” craft cola. The morale of the development team significantly declined.
“The taste issue” was the biggest challenge unanimously raised by Sadaoka, Yabe, and Moriya.
In the early prototypes, the spice flavor was too strong, or the bitterness and acidity of the daidai disrupted the balance, making it far from a taste that the entire team could agree on.
Despite not giving up and trying multiple prototypes, they became unsure of “what was not tasty,” and even questioned the quality of the spices and the condition of the daidai.
They could not achieve a satisfactory taste...
They had no choice but to halt the development of craft cola...
The development team was under pressure.
Completion of Satisfactory Craft Cola Concentrate After Trial and Error
When the team was thinking, “We might have to halt development,” the teacher in charge of the Kasa SHOP Research Team, Azuma Yoshinobu, spoke to the team members.
“Let’s try one more time. If that doesn’t work, then we’ll stop.”
Encouraged by this, the team members decided to create one last prototype.
Teacher Azuma recalls this moment.
“Everyone was in a bad mood. I thought we wouldn’t make it like this. There were students who wanted to quit. But I wanted them to find motivation somehow.”
After deciding to make it one more time, the students put in considerable effort, adjusting spices and changing the amount of sugar.
Regarding the spices, they had to make a bold decision to significantly reduce the strong aroma and taste that felt “unpleasant.”
There was also the challenge of how to bring out the flavor of the daidai. In the initial stages, the spices and other ingredients were so strong that the essential flavor of the daidai was hardly felt.
To solve these issues, the development team started from a state where all spices were removed and adjusted the balance of spices and acidity through trial and error.
In the fateful final prototype, after further adjusting the spice blend and sweetness, they finally completed a craft cola that could be called “delicious,” with a strong flavor of daidai.
The prototype became so popular that 1L of concentrate disappeared in no time, and the morale of the development team soared.
This success became a significant trigger to raise their attitude of “Let’s continue developing new products!”
The completed craft cola was first sold at a local event.
Visitors provided positive feedback such as “delicious” and “I want to drink it again,” which greatly boosted the confidence of the development team.
At the same time, they made further adjustments to the taste based on the improvement points collected through surveys.
Through this process, the current craft cola was completed.
Wanting Many People to Drink Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!
The first people they want to deliver the craft cola Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO! to are the locals of Kasaoka.
“We hope that after the locals drink it, it will spread to the region, western Japan, all over Japan, and eventually to the world.”
The three expressed "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" as “A cup filled with everything from Kasaoka.”
“We hope everyone enjoys Kasaoka to the fullest through craft cola,” they said with smiles.
Hometown tax donation to Kasaoka City has officially registered the return gift "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!".
Shipping will start in January 2025.
Future of Craft Cola
The three who developed the craft cola are about to graduate from high school, but they hope that this project will be passed on to the next grade and further developed. I heard their thoughts.
“We want to properly convey how to make craft cola to our juniors,”
is the common wish of the three. They hope that after their juniors learn the method of making craft cola and can produce it stably, they will take on new challenges.
“We want them to develop other products using daidai,”
they expressed their desire to further explore the potential of daidai and take on new challenges in areas beyond beverages, such as sweets and seasonings.
“We want them to develop new products using materials other than daidai,”
they hope to expand the project by utilizing other local specialties from Kasaoka.
From the Writer
The development of the craft cola "Kitagi-shima DAIDAIGO! GO!" by the third-year students of the Kasa SHOP Research Team at Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School was not just about creating a product, but also a valuable experience that contributed to each individual's growth.
“When I felt like giving up, I want to remember this experience and push through again.”
“When I felt like I was about to falter, it was because I had my friends that I was able to accomplish this.”
“By continuing, new things become visible.”
The three interviewed expressed these sentiments.
The confidence gained from overcoming challenges and the importance of perseverance will be a great support on the path ahead.
“We want to promote Kasaoka as the Town of Daidai.”
I look forward to the future of Kasa SHOP at Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School, which is taking on business plans that utilize local characteristics.
Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School Kasa SHOP Information
| Name | Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School Kasa SHOP |
|---|---|
| Location | 3203 Kasaoka, Kasaoka City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Homepage | Okayama Prefectural Kasaoka Commercial High School |
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“Daidai” is a fruit of the citrus family originating from the Indian Himalayas. It has a pleasant aroma but is strong in acidity and bitterness.