Japan Airlines cabin attendant and Southern Hokkaido region head Yamauchi Satomi put together cosmetics made with sake kasu (sake lees) and kome nuka (rice bran) from local sake “Gohhou” produced by Nanae Town sake brewery “Hakodate Jozo”. A company in Hakodate commercialized the products, and are selling them in six Hokkaido airports including Hakodate Airport and souvenir shops in Hakodate.

Yamauchi put this plan into motion to support the Hakodate Jozo brewery, which launched last year and put an end to a 35-year stretch of no sake breweries in Southern Hokkaido. She focused on the moisture retention performance of sake kasu and kome nuka and, with the help of Hakodate-based food product company “Ishokudougen”, developed a kome nuka lip balm (770 yen) and sake kasu bar soap (990 yen).

Yamauchi commented, “I wanted to promote local Southern Hokkaido sake with products that appeal to women. I also hope these products inspire tourists to visit the Hakodate area.”