On December 19th, the package design of the confectionery "Karitto Ringo Fuji" sold by Calbee (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) was renewed to incorporate Tsugaru Koginzashi.

“Karitto Ringo”, which Calbee started selling in December 2020, is a dried fruit product that leaves the apple skin. Made with Calbee's original "neo-dry method" using apples from Aomori Prefecture, non-fried. Based on the concept of "Aomori souvenirs," it is currently sold at some stores such as souvenir shops in Aomori Prefecture.

The idea for the Tsugaru Koginzashi design came from a visit to Hirosaki in May this year by a product manager from the company's Product Planning Headquarters who learned about Tsugaru Koginzashi at a local souvenir shop. "I started thinking about incorporating it into the package, not only because it looks cute, but because I thought it would be a product that is more closely related to the region," said the person in charge.

Tsugaru Koginzashi is a traditional embroidery technique that has been handed down in the Tsugaru region, and is characterized by geometric patterns called "modoko". In order to design "Modoko", I asked Mr. Iemasa Yamabata, a kogin designer who was born in Aomori and lives in Tokyo. Mr. Yamabata is engaged in activities such as producing "Tsugaru Kogin no Ma" at "Hoshino Resorts KAI Tsugaru" (Minamitsugaru-gun, Aomori Prefecture).

"Modoko is an embroidery pattern, so it was difficult to figure out how to incorporate it into the design," said the person in charge. We adopted the three designs proposed by Mr. Yamabata, such as an apple and a cross section of an apple with seeds visible, and an apple box, and applied them to the outside and inside of the box.

The person in charge said, ``We focused on fruits, which are new ingredients other than potatoes, and tried to make dried fruits that maximize the original deliciousness of apples. It has become a product. I hope people will pick it up.”

The price is 972 yen.