Corsican chestnuts at the Osaka World Expo

On July 5 and 6, Corsica and its chestnuts took center stage at the Japanese Pavilion at the Osaka World Expo.

During a tea ceremony, guests were able to taste cookies made from Corsican chestnut flour and discover the depth of the chestnut culture that still characterizes our island today.

Behind this exceptional event is a conviction: the chestnut, in Corsica as in Japan, is more than just a fruit, and can build a unique and robust cultural bridge.

It's a little-known fact that Japan, which produces some 16,000 tonnes of chestnuts a year, has developed a veritable "chestnut civilization" over the centuries, where gastronomy, landscape, arts and crafts bear witness to the special bond between man and the chestnut tree.

Shunkado, a major player in the Japanese agri-food industry, has been developing the "Waguri Project", a project based on Japanese chestnuts, for several years now: the chestnut, "humble and precious, embodies the sweetness of the land, the wisdom of the elders and the hope of a revival brought about by those who still believe in the power of the chestnut".

Shunkado invited numerous personalities from the worlds of economics, science, spirituality and politics to its stand at the World's Fair, to discover and rediscover the treasures of Japanese chestnuts... and Corsican chestnuts!

It took the enthusiasm of Vannina Bernard-Leoni, instigator of Castagnina and the Custodi di u Castagnetu collective, and Laure de Crépy, a specialist in cultural exchanges between Japan and France (with a special place for Corsica), to hoist the Corsican chestnut to the Osaka World Expo.

After meeting almost 20 years ago on the occasion of a project between Corsica and Japan, the pair met again in Ajaccio last year, invited by the Isulimondi festival for a carte blanche which they used to evoke the cultural link that chestnuts can embody between Corsica and Japan. 

Back in Japan, Laure de Crépy, now a French teacher at Matsuyama University, makes an appointment with the Shunkado company to talk about growing chestnuts in Corsica. 

After this wonderful showcase in Osaka, we are now working on organizing a trip to Corsica for a Japanese delegation in early autumn. 

From September 29 to October 4, Shunkado will be exploring the chestnut ecosystem in every corner of our island, meeting producers, entrepreneurs, researchers, chefs, artists, institutions and enthusiasts... A prestu!