SHINKAMIGOTO, Japan >> A town in Nagasaki prefecture’s Goto Islands last year set up a government department devoted to the area’s specialty noodles, Goto udon.

The department was created as part of Shinkamigoto’s municipal government to promote the noodles, a rare occurrence.

“We’d like to make our noodles a brand on par with Sanuki udon in Kagawa and Inaniwa udon in Akita,” said a section official.

Thin, handmade noodles

In mid-November, a banner reading “Udon no sato Shinkamigoto” (Shinkamigoto, an udon noodle town) flapped in the wind at Nagasaki Stadium City in Nagasaki, where all 91 students from the town’s Arikawa Junior High School were handing out packs of dried Goto udon to stadium visitors. Goto udon department officials organized the event.

“I hope more people will know that there’s such delicious food in Shinkamigoto,” said a 13-year-old student.

Goto udon is thin yet boasts a firm, supple texture. The noodles are handmade with camellia oil, another specialty of the Goto Islands. The oil prevents the noodles from clumping.

In Shinkamigoto, the most common preparation of Goto udon is jigoku-daki (literally, “hell boiling”), which involves eaters taking the noodles directly from the pot and dipping them into a sauce. Standard dipping sauces include one made with agodashi (dried flying fish), which has a refined taste, and raw egg with soy sauce, popular for its rich flavor.

Decline in producers

In recent years, Shinkamigoto has seen a drop in the number of udon producers. Noodle makers are aging out, and there aren’t enough successors to replace them. Seven years ago, there were 33 producers and sellers of Goto udon. Now there are 25.

Masuda Seimen, a 50-year-old noodle company, has garnered attention for its colorful noodles made with locally produced tomatoes, agodashi powder and other ingredients. Yet the company cannot keep up with demand during the busiest times of the year, such as the summer Bon holiday and the year-end and New Year holiday period, and it’s had to turn away orders.

“Some people in the industry are considering closing their businesses because they can’t maintain the production machinery or they don’t have heirs to carry on the business. There’s a need to continue making quality udon noodles with the whole town,” said Yoshinobu Masuda, Masuda Seimen’s third-generation president.

Expanding production

Amid such challenges, Shinkamigoto’s udon department was established in October. The town looks to expand production of Goto udon and strengthen support for the industry. Leaders are considering digital technologies that would improve efficiency and creating shared storage space that could ensure a stable supply of the noodle.

The department also promotes Goto udon beyond Shinkamigoto. In December in Takamatsu, the town participated for the first time in the Zenkoku Gotochi Udon Summit, an event promoting udon from across the country.

In fiscal 2023, based on the shipping values of the 25 udon businesses in the town, annual sales of Goto udon was about 1.48 billion yen (about $9.5 million). The town has set goals to increase sales to 2 billion yen.