The Akita-Mitane Moritake Junsai no Sato Revitalisation Council holds the “12th World Junsai Picking Championship”.

Junsai (water shield grass) is quietly booming as a summer delicacy at the Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market. It is a perennial aquatic plant of the water lily family that grows wild in marshes and ponds. The agar-like, slimy, transparent young leaves (called young leaves, young shoots or sprouts) and leaf stalks are picked from under the water. It has a very light taste, but it is also known as the emerald sprouting in the water, and its cool, slippery texture and throat feel remind us that summer has arrived. It is also rich in polyphenols and dietary fibre, and its low calorie content is gaining recognition as a healthy food.

Junsai, which can only grow in clean, rich water, is now extinct in four metropolitan prefectures and an extinct or semi-extinct species in 22 prefectures (“Japan’s Red Data Search System” 2021). Nevertheless, it has recently been cultivated in large numbers in shifting cultivation fields in the mountains, with Akita Prefecture producing about 80% of the country’s total.
One of the main production areas is the “Junsai no Sato” (village of junsai) in the town of Mitane, Akita, which organised the “World Junsai Picking Championship” to show the attractiveness of this rare delicacy to tourists and people from outside the prefecture.

The extremely simple rules of the competition – how many can be picked within a time limit of one hour – are the reason for the considerable excitement every year!

The 2025 championship was held last Saturday, 28 June, with the winner in the solo category weighing 1,575g and the winner in the pair category weighing 2,540g.

Junsai is a nationally prized luxury food category, but really it is a perfect accompaniment to any dish, with soup and vinegared dishes being the standard, and hot junsai nabe is popular even in midsummer in the town of Mikasa.
New ways of eating junsai, such as ‘junsai tempura’ and ‘junsai shabu shabu’, are also attracting attention. This year’s event has already been held, but next year’s event should be entered in conjunction with sightseeing at summer resorts in Akita Prefecture!