Protected local food
Daiei Watermelon
⼤栄⻄⽠
A watermelon from the hills of Hokuei and Kotoura in Tottori, left to ripen for about 48 days. It is sweet almost all the way to the rind.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 14 June 2019
- Region
- Chugoku
- Official name in Japanese
- ⼤栄⻄⽠
- Official area (in Japanese)
- ⿃取県東伯郡北栄町・琴浦町、倉吉市
Ripe right to the rind
Daiei watermelons are left on the vine for about 48 days after pollination so they are fully ripe. The sugar level near the rind is close to the level in the centre, so the whole slice tastes sweet, not just the heart. Shape and quality vary very little from melon to melon.
Black volcanic hills
They grow in Hokuei and Kotoura towns and Kurayoshi city in central Tottori. The hills here are covered in kuroboku, a fertile black volcanic soil that holds water but drains well, which watermelons like.
One standard for everyone
Growers share the same variety, methods and shipping standards, check every melon before it ships and sort them together. Years of this teamwork are why the market trusts the name.
Good to know
- Watermelon season here is early summer, roughly June to July.
- Kurayoshi has a small old town of white-walled storehouses that makes an easy stop on the way to the Tottori Sand Dunes.
Questions travellers ask
Why is it called Daiei?
It is named after the old Daiei town, which is now part of Hokuei town in Tottori.
When is it in season?
In early summer. Look for it in Japanese supermarkets and gift shops around June and July.
Where it comes from
More protected foods from the same area
Crafts from the same area
Heritage stories from the same area
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.