Pioneering carbon-free sake at sustainable Fukuju Brewery

It’s been almost two years since Fukuju Brewery (Kobe Syusui-kan) created the world’s first carbon-free sake “Fukuju Junmai EcoZero” in 2022, proving to the world that it’s possible to achieve both sustainability and excellent quality sake at the same time. Half a year later, in April 2023, they made all of Fukuju’s sake carbon-free, not just EcoZero.

Nada, one of Japan’s top 3 sake brewing regions

Sake is often made in regions blessed with water quality, rice and a climate of low temperatures and high humidity that helps fermentation. Among the various sake breweries, Nada (Hyogo Prefecture), Fushimi (Kyoto Prefecture) and Saijo (Hiroshima Prefecture) are the three major sake brewing regions.

Nada is especially blessed with mineral-rich water from both mountain underground sources and the ocean, as well as cool winds from the Rokkô Mountains. It has become a renowned sake-producing area due to its complex topography, nestled between the ocean and mountains, and the use of Yamada Nishiki, a rice variety essential for sake brewing.

The old brewery on its SDGs journey

Although Fukuju Brewery has a history spanning over 270 years, it’s always embracing the new. According to their CSR report, Fukuju Brewery has launched the “Sustainability Journey” project, which aims to “create delicious sake that does not burden the environment.

One of its key actions has been switching to 100% renewable energy, specifically hydroelectric power generated by Kansai Electric Power Co., as well as carbon-neutral LNG gas, which offsets CO2 emissions from extraction and transportation through carbon credits. Additionally, they promote the effective use of sake lees, a traditional Kansai regional food, as a measure against food waste and to help preserve cultural traditions.

They also offer another ethical sake “Kanna” (second from the left in the photo above), though it is available in limited quantities. This sake is made from 100% ethical Yamada Nishiki rice grown using recycled phosphorus fertilizer, addressing the issue of Japan’s heavy reliance on imported phosphorus.

Take a sake brewing tour with a tasting

You can also take a tour of the brewery to learn about the sake brewing process and enjoy tasting different kinds of sake for free. Though the tour is brief, it offers a clear and accessible overview of sake brewing, especially for beginners.

The shop next to the brewery offers a variety of souvenirs, from sake glasses to delicacies made with sake lees. For those unfamiliar, sake lees, or sake-kasu, is a byproduct of the sake brewing process used as a cooking ingredient due to its rich sweetness and nutritional value. My favorite is the sake lees ice cream, which has a real sake flavor and gives you a fresh take on the taste of sake.

Although it is still sweltering hot in Japan, autumn clouds are finally beginning to appear in the sky, and farmers will soon start harvesting rice. Why not explore sake and sustainability while enjoying the flavors of Japanese autumn?