is a day in the life of a Japanese kinoko maker [Music] this is casecape 37 years old living in the outer part of Tokyo and he's just waking up for work although married with three kids his youngest still sleeps with his wife a common practice in Japan so he prefers to sleep in a separate room for now due to its early morning schedule [Music] oh he likes country music nice since he has a busy day ahead he always tries to check his emails before work in case any issues the rose throughout the night it's is everyone still sleeping the country music doesn't wake them up sweet Alabama interestingly the average number of children for one household in Japan is 1.7 kids so I guess he's ahead of the game now he prepares breakfast one of his daily chores as his wife also works full time and they share the household responsibilities I guess he's making tamagoyaki first a traditional Japanese style egg omelet oh okay oh that's his youngest son cute good morning where's your brother and sister cool his wife and middle son are up too oh he's mixing his milk with kiniko a roasted soybean powder a superfood commonly used in Japanese Cuisine and I guess it's his protein shake for the day [Music] boy and that's his eldest daughter oh no she seems a bit Sunny this morning on school days Casey Alicia worked before the kids so he usually ends up eating by himself and today I guess he's eating natto rice and miso soup a very typical Japanese breakfast [Music] [Music] good morning everyone I'm back with another day in the life I'm super excited for this one because we get to see what Japanese craftsmanship is really like Casey should be coming around the corner soon let's see how he's doing [Music] good morning did you sleep last night cool just before starting his work day kids gave praise at The Shrine this is just in front of the factory is a popular deity associated with Fox's Harvest business prosperity and household well-being commonly found throughout Japan and this is his workplace Okawa sangyo a local clinical Factory that's been expertly crafting roasted soybean powder since 1908 when cascade's great grandfather started the factory kiniko powder though uniquely known for its soft flower like sweet and that it tastes originated in Japan during its NADA and heian period and was used as a medicine by the wealthy due to its exceptional nutritional value but now commonly eaten with many Japanese sweets like Mochi and even dairy products today the factory distributes their own signature roasted chemical powder all throughout Japan first Cascade takes care of any outstanding business matters inquiries and sales yields with new and existing customers now it's his responsibility to open up the factory and prepare for the kineko production so small to medium-sized factories like this one called machikoba have been part of the everyday landscape of small cities throughout Japan with about 374 000 in 1998 but has steadily decreased in number to 182 000 today despite it this local chemical Factory with more than 100 Years of history and six employees continues to craft some of the best cuticle powder in all of Japan oh that's Casey's dad the current owner hi what are you doing do you like working with your son um so did you think you take over the family business he says that the key to their successful business is to never stop thinking about how to Market their products in new ways so that customers can understand what they're making you look so young all right okay I mean you must regularly exercise right co-worker hi oh now it's finally time to start making their kindigo first he prepares the jet scrubber which helps filter and minimize the smoke released into the air from roasting their soybeans [Music] the factory uses a traditional Japanese soybean roasting and grinding method that's been passed down from generation to generation to generation which to this day still requires a great deal of Hands-On attention and skillful technique working with traditional Stone ovens one of them built in the 1950s to start raw soybeans are poured by hand into the stone oven feeder the factory uses fuku Yutaka soybeans known for its Exquisite sweetness grown in the rich and fertile soul of saga prefecture [Music] once above the beans are funneled into a specialized tank for roasting at around 220 degrees Celsius 428 Fahrenheit then ushered into a second roasting tank for another round the slow heat and natural airflow bringing out the soybeans natural sweetness [Music] all the while Casey keeping a Keen Eye on the soybeans as it's his sole responsibility to ensure that each one is roasted perfectly and meets the Factory's quality standards often smelling and tasting the beans during the process he says that this is the most difficult part as he must continually adjust the heat depending not only on the amount of beans being roasted but also take into account the quality of the bean humidity and weather conditions with only two years under his belt it's become his life goal to master the subtle roaching techniques taught to him by his father foreign and now that the soybeans are perfectly browned they're ready for the next step since Japanese sand is used during the roasting process every single grain must be sifted off of the roasted soybeans before they're ready to move on [Music] now the roasted soybeans are finally grounded into a sweet and silky smooth golden powder kinako on an average day like this the factory process is about 600 kilograms of 1320 pounds of their raw soybeans which will ultimately yield 30 18 kilogram 40 pound bags of sweet roasted finely ground kineko powder so it looks like Casey is going to be working on the machines over there for a bit so while he's doing that let's see if we can sort ourselves around this land [Music] foreign [Music] so it looks like they still have all of the old electrical in the walls I don't know if it's working anymore but it looks like they've kept it you know just to keep it I guess and that's an original wooden beam all this must be from when they rebuilt the factory and look up there they have a little I guess scarecrow something to scare the crows anyways you guys know what I mean okay so let's see what's going on in the office hi what are you doing are you a family member too she says she wasn't part of the family business in the beginning but started to help little by little and now she works full time how's it living on the factory property it must be pretty loud [Music] let's go see what's going on in that area oh I guess barley tea is packaged in this room although kiniko is their main product the factory also produces their own signature mugicha apparently quite popular during the hot summer months [Music] now that the soybean roasting is complete Casey must completely and thoroughly clean out the stone oven as it's the heart of their entire production process and must be taken care of every day to ensure that it lasts through the generations plus it's also used to roast their barley so all traces of soybeans must be removed now adds fuel oil into the stone oven [Music] so Casey do you want your kids to take over the family business [Music] your kids would be the fifth generation huh apparently when he first started working at the factory he wasn't used to all of the physical work and was quite sore every day to a point where he could barely finish the day but over time his body got stronger and he's now grateful that he has an active job which helps him stay healthy time for a drink break looks refreshing is that the movie oh customers here to buy their products the factory not only Wholesales their product but they also sell to individual customers on site it's evident that they built a strong local customer base who trusts their products and regularly come by in fact if you're in the US and want to try their kiniko and mugicha it's available online which I'll leave a link in the description [Music] yay lunchtime I guess today they ordered they might food delivery from a local silver shop and wow it's in the traditional Japanese food delivery style where the food is placed in non-disposable Bento boxes or even a bowl used in the restaurant which means the containers must be returned after the meal hey so your dad doesn't eat with you what are you eating how did you find this job I see what did you do before this oh so what do you like about this job awesome [Music] now he prepares the boxes for the kineko packaging so did you think you were gonna take over the family business in fact companies like his with a long history are called shinise and are quite common in Japan as there are about 43 000 companies which are more than 100 years old more than any country in the world and they're mostly family owned now that more workers have arrived they started the packaging and ksk joins in the line since the family business is such a small operation ksk literally does everything at the factory so what do you like about this job [Music] he says that he never really seriously thought about the family's kiniko that he grew up eating but since he's now involved in the family business and has had to try many different kinds of kiniko on the market he truly appreciates The Taste and is proud of the Kindle that his family has crafted over the years what are you doing you have to do that on your own [Music] since they run their business with a limited number of workers he needs to wear many different hats including repair and maintenance fortunately he'll learn a lot about machine repair in his previous job so he's able to reapply those skills here did your dad teach you how to fix machines haha foreign [Music] with his workers to sample new ways they may be able to introduce their kineko to their customers apparently the market is quite competitive in Japan with 27 companies producing kineko KCA understands that it's critical to produce a consistent high quality product but also recognizes the importance of innovation to help grow their family business and their legacy I might not did the cup noodles nephew is doing the tasting too [Music] [Music] it's now around 4pm and before leaving the place it's his responsibility to ensure that the entire Factory is cleaned and ready for tomorrow's production he takes the machine apart piece by piece and wipes each one clean so as to leave no residue from today's work [Music] foreign [Music] oh his daughter's back from school finally he finishes off the day by completing any remaining office work he couldn't attend to during the day are you finished yay finally done tonight Kate Skin's wife is working late so he's responsible for picking up the kids from nursery and making dinner before going homie stops by the nearest supermarket for tonight's dinner but apparently it's always a bit of a struggle shopping with three energetic kids oh no his son's upset because he can't buy what he wants dub Casey is using a butoshiki as an echo bag it's basically a traditional Japanese square piece of fabric that is made to wrap around stuff for transport you often see people in Japan using it when they're wearing a kimono [Music] finally they're back home [Music] after A Hard Day's Work nothing like capping it off with a cold one the kids usually get hungry around this time so he lets them eat something light while he prepares dinner and I guess tonight he's making so many other dishes to go with it oh that's kingdom do you like anime [Music] while he's washing out his used cans it's a common man in Japan to do this before recycling it [Music] oh his wife is back finally the family can enjoy dinner together Casey says that he truly values being able to spend his time with his wife and kids as he's grown even a deeper appreciation for family after working with his father at the factory and hopes that he'll be able to provide for his family as his father provided for him and his father before that [Music] my name [Music] okay so it looks like ksk and his family will be eating just for a little bit longer than after this they'll probably go and take a bath and then probably the kids will go to sleep around nine and then Casey will sleep around 10 o'clock but that's pretty much a day in the life of a Japanese kineko maker if you guys like this video help me out hit that like button if you guys want to help support the channel then check out the Tokyo merch and if you guys want to see more videos like this or anything related to Japan hit that subscribe button and that button I'll catch you guys in the next one
