Product Summary (Registration No.109)

Registration No.109 大口れんこん

Registered name (Transcription) : 大口れんこん（Okuchi Renkon）
Reference information : Okuchi Lotus root

Category of product

Class 1 : Products of Agricultural Origin (Lotus root) 

Production Area

Niigata Prefecture Administraive place names as of March 31, 1889: Okuchi Village, Ikenoshima Village, Oshikirishinden, Omoigawashinden, Omagato Village, Omagatoshinden, Haijimashinden, Nakagoya and Tsubone Village, Minamikambara County (currrent Nakanoshima Kamidori District, Nagaoka City)

Registered Group

Okuchi Renkon Producers Association

Characteristics

Okuchi Renkon lotus roots are shipped injury-free and with mud-free holes, thanks to the stringent quality standards in place. This means their white flesh cooks with less chance of discoloring into dark purple hues.
Okuchi Renkon lotus roots are rated highly for the whiteness of their flesh, crunchiness, sweetness, umami, and flavor, increasingly attracting orders asking for this specific production location.

Link with the Production Area

Renkon growth requires high temperatures, and so the widely accepted northern limit of commercially viable production has been Ibaraki and Tochigi Prefectures. Okuchi Renkon production in Niigata Prefecture further up north is an exception to this rule because it makes use of local groundwater, which is warmer than in parts of Niigata City. The high groundwater temperature has led to gas field and hot spring developments in the past.