Kagawa prefecture products

Ohara Benihaya

Photograph of Obara Beni Hayao

We deliver only delicious food.
Shipped through thorough management and sortingOharaBarbarared earlyBeniwaseIt is,
It is a “miracle red mandarin orange” born from a series of coincidences.
The high sugar content and rich sweetness will give you an unforgettable taste once you eat it.

Seasonal season
Time to go around Peak season (seasonal season)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Main production area
Takamatsu City, Sakaide City, Kannonji City, Mitoyo City
  • OharaBarbarared earlyBeniwaseAnd

    The history of Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges began in 1973, when Obara Yukiharu found a bud sport on a “Miyakawa Wase” mandarin orange tree in his orchard at the foot of Goshikidai Highland. A “bud sport” occurs when a branch mutates mid-growth due to a sudden change to the properties of the plant. In an orchard full of trees, only one red mandarin was discovered. When Mr. Obara found the red mandarin, he was extremely surprised. It was like a miracle that such a beautiful and marketable fruit was produced from a bud sport, since most turn out to be inferior to the main plant. Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges, with their high sugar content and intense sweetness, are also known as “Kintoki Mandarin Oranges” due to their red color. The name “Kintoki” refers to Sakata Kintoki, a figure in Japanese history famous for his red complexion. Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges are selected based on strict standards for appearance, quality and sugar content, and only fruit that has a sugar content of 11.5 or more can be sold under the name “Sanuki San Fruits”. Additionally, oranges that have a sugar content of 12.5 or more are sold as “Sanuki Beni”, while fruit with a sugar content of 11.5 or more are referred to as “Kintoki Beni”. Only fruit which is guaranteed to satisfy the customer is sent to the market.

  • High Quality Fruit Produced by the Passion of Growers

    Sweet and delicious Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges are the result of careful management by growers. In order to increase the sugar content, a “multi-sheet” is laid out in late August, which helps regulate the amount of water in the soil. While this sheet can be used to prevent too much rain water absorption, by sliding a pipe under the sheet, it can also be used to make sure the soil does not become too dry. Also, to bring the sugar content of mandarin oranges growing over the winter months up to 8 percent, each fruit is wrapped in a bag and left on the tree to slowly ripen. Starting in the middle of January, when they are almost completely ripe, the wrapped oranges are packed in a box and shipped to each region. The careful management and passion of growers to produce “delicious oranges that many people can enjoy”, has resulted in Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges with a high sugar content and deep red color.

  • 20 Years to Register,
    10 Years to Grow Delicious Oranges

    It was 1973 when Mr. Obara first discovered Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges. In 1993, they were registered as a new variety. This process took over 20 years. Mr. Obara took his one and only red mandarin to the Agricultural Experiment Station, where inspections and trials were conducted over and over. Mr. Obara says that it was thanks to the passion of the people around him that helped get his seedling registered. In fact, he needed to be distracted for all those years, because it takes 10 years before a tree raised from a seedling will produce delicious mandarin oranges. It takes about 3 years after a seedling is planted to produce fruit for the first time, but the flavor will be far from where it needs to be. A young tree will only produce thick-skinned, bland-tasting fruit at the beginning, but after 3 years, it will finally start producing truly delicious mandarin oranges. The joy of harvesting delicious fruit could only be enjoyed for a moment, however, because the next task was to let people know about the great taste of Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges. Growers never gave up, and as a result of the continuous efforts of many people, Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges became well known and sales steadily increased. With further testing and trials, Obara Beniwase Mandarin Oranges are sure to be loved by even more people in the future.

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