Yearning for a life in the forest, she moved to Hokkaido. The story behind the aromatherapy brand, Fupunomori.

I was originally born in Hokkaido and grew up in Chitose City. While all of Hokkaido is rich in nature, Shimokawa Town is particularly focused on forestry and is even more abundant in nature.

When I actually moved there, the temperature and climate were so different that it was a cultural shock, even within the same prefecture!

While there are other municipalities that focus on forestry, Shimokawa Town's major characteristic is that it has actively challenged new initiatives.

For example, Shimokawa Town was the first in Hokkaido to acquire an international certification system that allows marks to be placed on properly managed forests and products produced from them.

Furthermore, it was earlier than other municipalities in starting its own initiatives to create employment and aim for sustainable forestry by actively expanding its owned forests.

How did you discover Shimokawa Town?

Shimokawa Town's innovative initiatives are well-known nationwide.

Shimokawa Town aims for circular forestry, with the goal of "preserving the same forest for 60 years," which involves planting new trees after harvesting.

Not only do they plan how much to cut and plant each year, but they also actively utilize forest resources such as thin logs that don't meet distribution standards.

For example, they turn thin trees unsuitable for lumber into charcoal, and then use the smoke produced during charcoal burning to make wood vinegar. They are skilled at effectively utilizing by-products and connecting them to new products.

All the aroma products from your brand, which started in Shimokawa Town, smelled wonderful and were very soothing.

When you think of forests, you might be familiar with the scents of cypress, hiba, and cedar, but the scents of our products might have a slightly different feel.

We use "Todomatsu" (Sakhalin fir), the only fir tree that grows in Hokkaido, which we call "Hokkaido Fir," and we believe you can experience the characteristic scent of Hokkaido's forests.

What were the challenges you faced during the product development process?

We have two brands: "FUPUNOMORI" and "NALUQ."

FUPUNOMORI, which was created first, aims for people to simply enjoy the aromas extracted from Hokkaido plants.

NALUQ, launched in 2015, aims for people to enjoy the scents of our original essential oil blends.

How is pine resin collected?

In the case of Todomatsu, pine resin is collected from the bark. We harvest it manually from trees scheduled for felling or those already felled.

Since it's an analog method, having extra hands would be helpful, but we go to the site according to felling timings and weather, so scheduling with forestry work often happens at the last minute, making it difficult to plan in advance and gather personnel.

The same applies when collecting branches and leaves for essential oils; we arrange our other tasks to secure days for going to the mountains.

Do you commission another company for the essential oil production process? 

Regarding the production of essential oils, the three of us go into the forest, distill, and handle everything up to shipping the products ourselves!

(While saying this, Ms. Tanabe gave an online tour of the factory on the spot.)

When you leave the office, it becomes a factory like this. This is the machine used for distillation.

The finely chopped branches and leaves are placed in a pot and steamed from below. The collected steam is cooled and returned to liquid, resulting in aromatic distilled water and essential oil. Due to differences in specific gravity, the essential oil floats on top and the aromatic distilled water settles at the bottom, and they are collected separately.

How long does one distillation take, and what is the quantity?

For Todomatsu, we distill approximately 70-80 kg of raw material for about 2 hours per session. Since it's mainly leaves, distillation takes relatively less time compared to distilling wood.

The weight also varies each time, depending on the condition of the raw material. Plants with strong fragrances yield essential oils, but for the branches and leaves of white birch that we distill, essential oil is hardly extracted, so we only utilize the aromatic distilled water.

We also utilize the leaves after distillation! Most of them go to farmers for compost, but we also sell them as "scented pillows" by putting them in pillows.

Actually, fresh leaves don't have much of a scent. The aromatic components are released when they are torn or distilled.

You truly use everything without waste!
Finally, please tell us about the thoughts behind your wonderful packaging.

The person who was originally in charge of this business also handles design and visuals.

Since our main business is forestry, they apply their practical experience from the field to their photography and expressive vision. For the NALUQ logo, we imagined European mountain cabins, like those in Austria, to easily convey the idea of "a life with forests." We strive to create simple designs that can be enjoyed by everyone, regardless of gender.

Ms. Tanabe, who admired a life with forests, gathered information from various people and even decided to relocate. Her initiative truly impressed us!

Hearing about her stance of not indiscriminately using trees, but rather collecting raw materials from trees scheduled for felling and utilizing even the processed leaves without waste, made us feel that this is a brand we would want to continue using. Why not experience the soothing scent unique to Shimokawa Town, a town rich in forest resources that aims for circular forestry, and bring it into your daily life?

PROFILE | FUPUNOMORI Co., Ltd.

A cosmetics and lifestyle brand born in Shimokawa Town, located in northern Hokkaido, with the concepts of "being made from Hokkaido materials," "pursuing high quality," and "communicating a forest-living lifestyle."

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