ABOUT

The journey of Mizutani Matsujiro began in 1912, in Mie Prefecture. Since then, Mizutani Bee Farm has continued its adventure with the bees for 110 years and counting.

When our founder Matsujiro started farming his first bees, he was deeply impressed by how their work benefits not only humans but all living things on the Earth.

It was second-generation beekeeper tai, who implemented translocation beekeeping at our farm, and laid the foundations of modern apiculture. In 1928, we officially established the Mizutani Bee Farm, and, after a lot of trial and error, we developed our translocation beekeeping technique. We have come up with safe transportation methods for honeybees when traveling from north to south to follow the flowering season, as well as technologies to protect the natural taste and nutrients of honey.

Seiichi, mastered the knowledge of the lives and habits of honey bees to the extent that people called him “the god of bees”. He put great effort into raising his successor and contributed greatly to the development of the beekeeping industry. In 1939, he founded the Japanese Beekeeping Association, and in 1965 and he was the first in Japan to succeed in the pollination of strawberries (cultivated in plastic houses), for which he received praise and recognition, and in 1991, he was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure.

In 1957, third-generation beekeeper Mizutani Tami took on the challenge of selling honey in bottles. The Mizutani brand was born. Tami negotiated with the then National Railway (currently JR) and obtained a permit to sell the honey at the Station Supply Departments, where employees and families used to purchase household goods. Selling at Station Supply Departments, we shared with people the deliciousness, nourishment, and fun of honey.

Tami came up with the idea of selling honey by flower type. From the know-how developed over years of pioneering translocation beekeeping, we started focusing on having our bees collect honey from the same flowers. As the flavors and aromas of flowers such as lotus, alpine plants, and mandarin differ, this new concept we dreamed of caught the attention of many people.

Ise Jingu has more than 2,000 years of history, and it is a place where you can get to know the spirituality and rich culture and traditions of Japan.

At Matsujiro no Mise, we carefully select the honey we collect, and make an offering to Ise Jingu every year. It is a great honor to make an offering to Ise Jingu, and every year we convey our gratitude for collecting honey safely and wish for a safe collection for the following year.