"Who Says Hokkaido Is Cool?" Sapporo Beer at Risk from Climate Change [Sunday Culture]

Sapporo Beer Born from the Pioneering of Hokkaido
Barley for Beer Thrived in Hokkaido’s Cool Climate
Mainichi: "Climate Change Threatens Barley Crops... Beer Prices Likely to Soar"

The weather has become noticeably cooler these days. After a long and grueling summer, it finally feels like autumn is arriving. This summer was particularly hot, and Japan was no exception. Across the country, temperatures exceeded 40 degrees Celsius. When people talk about avoiding Japan in the summer because of the heat, the question often comes up: "Isn't Hokkaido still cool, though?" Recently, Japanese media reported that as summers in Japan become hotter, Sapporo Beer-a specialty of Hokkaido-is at risk. How did Sapporo Beer originate, and why is it now threatened? Today, let's explore the story of Sapporo Beer and climate change.

'The Perfect' sold at Sapporo Beer Certified Stores.

The Birth of Sapporo Beer Intertwined with Japanese History

So, how did Sapporo Beer come to be? To explain this, we need to go back to the Meiji Restoration in the 19th century. As the samurai class and the shogunate system began to collapse, anti-shogunate forces staged a coup, and through the Meiji Restoration, Japan transformed into a centralized modern state. The newly established Meiji government set its sights on Hokkaido in the north, which borders Russia. This land was strategically important for keeping Russia in check. To develop the region, the Meiji government established the Hokkaido Development Commission and began large-scale development. People from across the country were recruited to settle there, railways were built, and various factories were established. The commission's flag at the time featured a red star, symbolizing the spirit of pioneers who, inspired by the North Star, kept moving forward.

The commission eventually grew into a prefectural government, around which many businesses emerged. One such business was beer brewing. Seibei Nakagawa, the first Japanese to travel to Germany and learn the art of brewing, became the inaugural brewmaster. He used the German method of fermenting and maturing beer at low temperatures, and in 1877, this beer was finally introduced to the market as Sapporo Beer. The brand adopted the red star from the commission's flag as its mark. Even today, Sapporo offers a retro-style lager line featuring the red star.

Sapporo Akaboshi bottled beer. Sapporo beer.

If you think about it, the Sapporo Beer mark is now a yellow star. This change occurred in 2003, when Sapporo Beer Co., Ltd. became Sapporo Holdings. To demonstrate their unwavering pioneering spirit, they originally intended to use a gold star, but for printing convenience, it became yellow.

In any case, Sapporo Beer rose to the top of the industry, establishing a factory in Tokyo in 1905. At that time, the Japanese beer market was fiercely contested by three brands: Yebisu, Asahi, and Sapporo. In 1906, these three companies merged under the name "Dai Nippon Beer." With the merger, Dai Nippon Beer captured over 70% of the market share. Instead of using the previous brand names, they unified under the "Nippon Beer" brand, aiming for nationwide popularity. However, many people still missed the original Sapporo and Yebisu beers. As a result, Sapporo Beer was revived in Hokkaido in 1956, and the following year, the company switched back from the Nippon Beer name to Sapporo Beer for nationwide sales. Yebisu Beer was also revived in 1971. Today, Sapporo Beer remains so popular that it consistently ranks in the top four in annual Japanese beer brand popularity polls.

There is another group whose story cannot be left out of Sapporo Beer’s history: the Ainu, the indigenous people who originally inhabited areas from Hokkaido to Sakhalin and the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia. They spoke a language different from Japanese and lived by fishing for salmon and hunting. Under the pretext of development, the Japanese government implemented assimilation policies in the region. The land, originally called "Ezo," was renamed "Hokkaido," meaning "Northern Sea Road" in Japanese. The government forced the Ainu to learn Japanese and imposed fishing bans, among other measures. For this reason, some argue that the term "pioneering" is not value-neutral. While Sapporo Beer uses the red star flag to emphasize the pioneering spirit, it is important to remember that this also brought suffering to some people.

Sapporo Beer at Risk Due to Climate Change

Draft beer image sold by Sapporo Beer. Sapporo Beer.

Sapporo Beer now faces a new challenge: climate change. Hokkaido is no longer a "cool place in summer." On July 23, some areas of Hokkaido recorded temperatures as high as 38.2 degrees Celsius-13.7 degrees above the seasonal average-and in Obihiro, a city famous for winter sports, the temperature reached 38.8 degrees. Even Hokkaido is now as hot as other regions in summer.

On September 20, the Mainichi Shimbun predicted that without effective countermeasures against global warming, by 2050, the harvest of malting barley would decrease, causing the price of raw materials to rise by 770 million yen (7.25 billion won) compared to 2022. As beer supply decreases and prices rise, the price per 500ml could go up by 400 yen (3,766 won). This could mean an era when a can of beer costs nearly 10,000 won. Since malting barley is mainly grown in Hokkaido, this is an emergency for Sapporo Beer. Additionally, the northernmost latitude for hop cultivation is 55 degrees north, which includes cold areas like Hokkaido in Japan. As Hokkaido gets warmer, countries at similar latitudes are likely to face the same situation, according to Mainichi's analysis.

Because of this, Sapporo Beer has started taking action against climate change. It may seem surprising for a beer company to address climate change, but Sapporo Beer is focusing on breeding barley and hop varieties that can withstand warming, heavy rain, and torrential downpours. They are making great efforts to ensure that the taste remains unchanged even as they develop new varieties.

Hops grown at the Sapporo Beer Raw Material Development Laboratory. Sapporo Beer.

A representative from Sapporo Beer headquarters told Mainichi that if climate change causes beer prices to rise, "the era when draft beer is taken for granted may come to an end." The possibility that climate change could take away our cherished glass of beer is a wake-up call. It seems the time has come for us to take this seriously.