Source: Peatix

Following on from last year, Niigata Prefecture will be holding the Niigata Edamame Mori Festival, an all-you-can-eat food festival event featuring edamame grown in Niigata, in Shibuya, Tokyo. This is the one and only event in the Tokyo metropolitan area where you can enjoy to your heart's content edamame grown in Niigata, which is so beloved by the people of Niigata, "Edamame Prefecture," that they eat them all up.

This year, the event will be held three times on Sunday, June 29th, Friday, July 4th, and Saturday, July 5th. Not only can you compare the wide variety of edamame that Niigata is proud of, enjoy Niigata's local sake and local cuisine, but the Tokyo preliminaries of the popular international competition "World Edamame Speed Eating Championship" (held on Sunday, July 20th, 2025 / Organizer: Nagaoka Nochalle Project Executive Committee / Executive Committee Chairman: Oshima Ken), which has attracted attention from overseas, will also be held at this event this year. This year marks the third year of the Tokyo preliminaries, and every year a high-level battle is waged, with those who pass the preliminaries doing great in the championship! This year, with the preliminaries being held over a total of three days, there are also more chances to participate in the finals! Eat some edamame and head to Niigata!

Try some edamame and head to Niigata!

[Niigata Edamame Festival]
・You can enjoy Niigata gourmet food and local sake, as well as comparing the taste of Niigata-grown edamame!
・Niigata gourmet offers plenty of snacks that go well with rice and local sake!
・A large collection of Niigata local sake from all over the prefecture, with a focus on local sake from Nagaoka City!
・Participants will also receive souvenirs from Niigata! This is a great event!

What's more, the Niigata Edamame Mori Festival will be hosting the Tokyo qualifying round for the World Edamame Speed-Eating Championship!
If you participate and pass the preliminary round, you will be invited to the championship to be held in Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture!
(Part of the travel expenses and championship participation fee will be covered by the secretariat.)

[The competitive spirit of the edamame speed eater]
We have deep respect and affection for the edamame beans that have been grown with the blessings of the earth and great love, and we are grateful for the work of many people. Not a single grain will be wasted, and we will take on the challenge with a stronger "love for edamame" than anyone else.

[Qualifying Round Rules]
Participants will be divided into groups on stage and compete under the same regulations as in the main competition.

*In order to ensure fairness in the standard gram amount, the edamame beans served on the plate before the start of the competition will be weighed in 1g increments (398g, 996g, etc.) and this value will be used as the standard value (as edamame beans vary from one to another, making it difficult to divide them into exactly 400g or 1,000g).

*There are no handicaps for men or women.

[Basic Rules of the Championship]
When eating, you must always bring the bean pod to your mouth. It is prohibited to take the beans out first and then eat them all at once.
Eating the whole soybean pod is also prohibited.
Interfering with other competitors or causing a nuisance to the tournament as a whole will result in disqualification.
Intentional delay will be considered a violation of the athlete's spirit and will result in the participant being ineligible for special awards or any other judging.

[Measurement method]
Participants will be divided into groups on stage and compete under the same regulations as in the main competition.
Standard number of grams - (A. number of grams of leftover soybeans + B. number of grams of eaten soybean shells) = number of grams of performance
Participants with the highest scores will pass the preliminary round!!

[Event Schedule]
1st: Sunday, June 29, 2025 Doors open: 10:30 AM Event time: 11:00 AM - 1:30 PM
2nd session: Friday, July 4, 2025, Doors open: 18:30, Event duration: 19:00-21:30
3rd session: Saturday, July 5, 2025. Doors open at 10:30. Event hours: 11:00-13:30.

【ticket fee】
Includes a ticket to the Tokyo Qualifiers for the World Edamame Speed-Eating Championship: 3,500 yen
(The ticket price includes edamame and other food and drink.)
*Please note that we do not accept cancellations or refunds after purchase, regardless of the reason.
On the day, you will be able to enjoy a tasting of different Niigata-grown edamame beans, various Niigata local sakes, local cuisine made with seasonal ingredients, and Niigata rice.
At this event, we will also be participating in the Tokyo Preliminary of the World Edamame Speed Eating Championship!
If you make it through the preliminary rounds and place in the top positions, you will be invited to the finals to be held in Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture on Sunday, July 20th!

【host】
Minoru Cris Takizawa
Radio personality/entertainer
In addition to being in charge of FM Niigata Sound Splash on Wednesdays and Thursdays, she is currently in charge of the three-hour live broadcast "From Athlete" every Saturday morning on 32 stations nationwide from Japan FM Network (JFN). She is a radio personality active nationwide.

He also hosts the World Edamame Speed-Eating Championship.
* MC for the first and third sessions

Terry Ueda
Event producer. Author of "The Event Textbook No One Will Teach You."
In the summer, he works as Somen Jiro, a somen noodle researcher.

* MC for the second event

【Notes】
The preliminary round will be individual matches only.
The finals of the "World Edamame Eating Championship" will be held on Sunday, July 20, 2025. Those who pass the preliminary round will be able to participate in the finals, so please only participate if you are able to participate in the finals.
If you pass the preliminary round and advance to the final round, the preliminary round secretariat will cover part of your travel expenses and the participation fee for the final round.
Those who apply for the individual and team competitions in the finals and are selected will not be able to participate in the preliminary rounds. (They will be able to participate in the festival.)
This event is set to participate in the Tokyo qualifying round of the "World Edamame Speed Eating Championship". If you do not want to participate in the qualifying round and only want to participate in the Niigata Edamame Mori Festival, please select "Do not participate (only participate in the festival)" in the question about the qualifying round in the survey.
Anyone can participate in this event, but please note that those under the age of 16 cannot participate in the preliminary rounds.
l We will have medical staff on standby in case of an emergency during the qualifying round, but please note that you are solely responsible for any accidents that occur during the competition. Please note that we will ask you to sign a consent form for the qualifying round.
When you purchase your ticket, please check the questions in the survey.

Related Sites
https://edamame-yosen.world/

Tokyo Culture Culture is a restaurant where you can enjoy events while eating and drinking.
All seats are unreserved and admission will be in the order of the serial number on the advance charge ticket. Although there are sufficient seats available, because all seats are unreserved, you may not be able to sit next to your friends when it is crowded. Thank you for your understanding.
*All prices include tax.

Organized by:
Nagaoka Agricultural Challe Project Executive Committee
Niigata Prefecture

Cooperation:
Tokyo Culture Culture

[Contact for inquiries regarding this matter]
World Edamame Speed Eating Championship Tokyo Preliminary Office
Full Time Co., Ltd.
TEL：03－6412－7795
MAIL ：niigataedamamemori@gmail.com
Person in charge: Hirazawa, Furusaka

Venue