Our Town Inagi 2019: Eiji Shiobara

Beekeepers of Inagi City

Located within a 30-minute train ride from the city center, Eiji Shiobara runs a beekeeping business in Inagi City, which retains rich nature.
Beekeeping is the practice of raising bees to collect honey, royal jelly, propolis, beeswax, pollen, and more. Mr. Shiobara collects honey from flowers such as cherry blossoms, rapeseed, clover, acacia, and sunflowers in Inagi City.
During his student days, Mr. Shiobara was shocked by the scale of beekeeping in America and studied beekeeping for a year under a beekeeper in Shinshu. He later learned that Inagi, with its abundant nature, is an ideal place for beekeeping, leading him to where he is today.

When I asked Mr. Shiobara, who has been engaged in beekeeping for over 50 years, about the difficulties he has faced, he passionately replied, "I have never felt any hardship. Even when troubles arise, I feel motivated to overcome them."
Mr. Shiobara has served as the advisor for the beekeeping club at Inagi Dai 3 Junior High School for about 9 years. In the beekeeping club, Mr. Shiobara teaches beekeeping to teachers four times a month, and based on that, the teachers instruct the students. Therefore, Mr. Shiobara's beekeeping site is named "Inagi Beekeeping Dojo." Currently, he is also providing guidance to teachers from junior high and high schools outside the city, further expanding the scope of Mr. Shiobara's activities.

Mr. Shiobara believes that through beekeeping, children should have various questions and find their own answers. He mentioned that in an era where you can easily obtain what you want from the supermarket, it is important to teach the process of growing crops and the significance of the food chain until it reaches their mouths.
Mr. Shiobara hopes that many children will continue to experience beekeeping in the future and feel that "the knowledge and education they acquire is a treasure that cannot be stolen by anyone."
Let's support Mr. Shiobara, who provides children with valuable experiences as a rare beekeeper in the city.
Honey can be purchased at Tama Beekeeping Garden (Yanokuchi).