Kyoto students help upcycle unmanaged bamboo into local menma

Kirameki no Mirai will continue its Kyoto-grown Menma Project for the third consecutive year, a project which transforms young bamboo from unmanaged groves in Yawata City, Kyoto Prefecture, into menma, a standard bamboo shoot ramen topping. Select Kirameki no Tori restaurants will serve the locally sourced ingredient from 1 September 2026.

Abandoned bamboo forests in Japan poses an environmental challenge. Unmanaged bamboo spreads quickly and damages surrounding ecosystems by blocking sunlight and disrupting native vegetation. Simultaneously, local forestry faces labour shortages and an ageing workforce. By harvesting young bamboo before it matures, Kirameki no Mirai mitigates forest degradation and sources ingredients locally.

The project includes educational and social welfare components. The company partnered with the high school division of Kyoto Prefectural Yawata Support School. In April, 25 second-year students harvested the young bamboo and prepared it in the school’s kitchen by chopping, boiling, and salting the shoots. In July, company employees visited the school to instruct the students on preparing the restaurant’s signature chicken white broth ramen, allowing the students to taste the final product featuring the menma they processed.

Production capacity expanded each year to meet demand. The project yielded 700 kilogrammes of menma in 2024, grew to 1.2 tonnes in 2025, and aims for a record 1.5 tonnes in 2026. The topping becomes available with the salt, soy sauce, and miso variations of the chicken white broth ramen.