Daifuku is a traditional Japanese confectionery which has existed since the 18th century. The traditional Daifuku is made of bean paste from red beans wrapped in mochi. In the 2020s, Fruit Daifukus came out in the market and have grown more popular ever since.
Traditional Daifuku with seasonal fruits - Fruit Daifuku
As the name implies, fruit Daifuku are different types of fruits, such as mandarin, apple, kiwi, pineapple, mango, wrapped in the bean paste.
Fresh fruits are pricey in Japan, especially during summer when seasonal fruits are available. Locals enjoy eating seasonal fruits in a novel way, or buy them as gifts for others. In some traditional Daifuku stores, often people are lining up buying them. Locals like to take pictures of this sweet desert and share them on social media.
“With increased sales, we use automatic peeler technology to increase capacity”
With this booming trend, Koichiro Kato, a Japanese entrepreneur, recently established his fruit Daifuku brand, Kajuan. Kato shared his experiences, “We originally planned to open an e-commerce site only, but I was asked by the president of a company I had worked with to try opening a physical store. I was originally trained as a French chef and was going to go to France for training, but the chance to go abroad disappeared with Covid, so I studied management in the meantime, and developed Kajuan brand Fruit Daifuku by making use of my knowledge of French cuisine, such as adding a secret flavor to the white bean paste.”
With the increase in sales, Kato recently purchased a few automatic fruit peeling machines to ease the production process. “We chose the Astra peeler, as it is a very well-known peeling brand in the local fruit processing sector. The model we use is the KA-700H, we use it for peeling all small types of fruits, from kiwi and citrus, to pears and apples.”
“The machines did a great job, we are really happy with them. Take kiwi as an example, it takes 30 seconds for well-trained staff to peel a kiwi. But with the machine, a kiwi can be easily peeled in 3 seconds. Our work efficiency increased by almost 10 times!” Kato said.
“What is attractive about Fruit Daifuku, is the exquisite and beautiful appearance of the fruits inside. Often in Daifuku stores, staff cut the desert in front of you. What we liked about the Astra KA-700H, is that the fruits come out with a beautiful round shape, which makes them easy to use.” Kato said.
“Juicy and nicely cut fresh fruit is one of the key factors that define the good quality of Fruit Daifuku, but we also have to make sure the fruit piece is not too watery, otherwise the juice will mess up the texture of mochi. The Astra peeler is very suitable. Unlike other types of “round type” peelers in the market, the machine uses a ‘blade peeling method’. When turning, the blade moves smoothly, while always tightly pressed to the surface of the fruit. This prevents fruits from dripping, and greatly helped us guarantee the texture of the Daifuku.”
With this increased production capacity, the brand Kajuan is becoming more and more well known. Kato shared an interesting story, “At the time, when we opened a store in Nagasaki, about 60 people lined up in the rain and stood there for about an hour. The mayor of Nagasaki saw the line and placed a reservation for 30 Fruit Daifukus.”
When talking about the company’s plans, Kato said, “We have opened stores from Sendai in the north to Nagasaki in the south, and we would like to continue to spread Fruit Daifuku in all regions of Japan. This year we are aiming to open 30 stores,” Kato said. “Of course, we would like to continue to increase productivity and produce delicious fruit Daifuku with our ASTRA automatic peeling machines!”
Astra- Peeler innovator
Over the past 20 years, Astra has been fully dedicated to automatic peeler innovation. ASTRA manufactures a variety of peeling machines for various demands. Its peeler series includes, a tabletop compact peeler KA-700H for small types of fruits such as oranges, citrus, kiwi and apples. The KA-750 is for larger types of fruits, such as pineapples, melon and mangoes.
For more information about Astra peeler, please click here
More information:
ASTRA Inc.
Mr Ryo Takeshita
Tel.: +81 0245412444
E-mail: ryo@e-astra.co.jp
Website: https://en.e-astra.co.jp/