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       Children hold long daikon radishes in both hands after pulling them out in Tokyo's Nerima Ward on Dec. 5, 2021. (Mainichi/Mei Nammo)

       TOKYO -- Over 300 people took part in the daikon radish harvesting contest at a field in Tokyo's Nerima Ward on Dec. 5, with the men's division won by a local who pulled out 18 of the vegetables in one minute.

       Nerima Ward's specialty daikon are longer and thicker than ordinary varieties. Amid heated competition under the winter sun, participants could be heard remarking loudly on the produce's heaviness.

       Since 2007, the harvesting contest has been held to publicize Nerima Ward's urban agriculture. Nerima daikon production goes back to the Edo period (1603-1867), and they can grow to as large as nearly 1 meter long and 5 kilograms heavy. The contest includes men's and women's events in which participants compete to remove the highest number of daikon in a minute, and an event in which teams compete to extract the longest vegetable. Children were seen giving their all to harvest daikon.

       Hideki Taniguchi, a 51-year-old company employee and local resident, extracted 18 daikon to win the men's division. He has reportedly competed at nearly 10 editions, and said with a smile: "The key to pulling them out is lowering your hips and lifting with your whole body's strength. I learned about Nerima daikon through the contest, and I hope this will prompt everyone to become more familiar with daikon."

       (Japanese original by Mei Nammo, Tokyo City News Department)

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