Jan 15, 2026
Strawberry mascots in Japan
As you may know, Japan is very fond of its strawberries. And if you've been in Japan any length of time, you'll also be aware that Japan is very fond of its mascots too! Almost every town and city in Japan have a mascot. It may actually be every single one! There are also some companies and organizations that have a representative mascot too.
With today being strawberry day, I was reminded of a nearby town with a strawberry mascot. Yoshimi Town in the Hiki District of Saitama prefecture, has a mascot that is modeled on a strawberry, because the town is known for its strawberries. S/he is called "Yoshimin", pictured in this post.

But its not the only strawberry mascot in Japan. There are several others. For example, Kanuma City (Tochigi) has Berry-chan, Pippu Town (Hokkaido) has Snowberry-chan, and Ebina City (Kanagawa) has a prawn character with a strawberry body, reflecting local produce. Do you know of any others?
Former nickname was "Saitama". Changed it to save confusion on place review posts! Irish, 20+ years in Japan! I also write on my personal website: insaitama.com
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