The Aomori Chamber of Commerce and Industry Youth Division (Aomori YEG) is currently calling for “offering apples,” which are rice cakes topped with apples.

The “offering apple” is an initiative that started to decorate the New Year with Aomori apples instead of putting mandarin oranges on kagami mochi. It was started in 2002 with the aim of fostering love for the hometown and promoting the small size apple "Hime Ringo".

According to Keita Maruyama, the chairman of Aomori YEG, mandarin oranges are used in kagami-mochi as a lucky charm, which is a pun to say, "The family continues for generations." “I would like to substitute red apples, which are a symbol of happiness, to create a New Year that is unique to Aomori,” says Maruyama.

Every year, Aomori YEG distributes princess apples. This year, on December 24, 5,700 were distributed in front of Aomori Station and commercial facilities, and were distributed free of charge to four universities in Aomori. This year, for the first time, we will hold a photo contest using Instagram. Participation conditions include posting a photo of Hime Ringo with the “# Hime Ringo Photo Contest” attached.

Maruyama says, "I want to make New Year's Day, which uses apples like Aomori, take root. I would love to post photos on SNS and make it like a tradition."

The photo contest is open until January 15, 2023.