"Umeda Marche," held every third week of the month, is a food market where visitors get to know the appeal of seasonal ingredients through conversation with producers and salespeople. To mark its 1st anniversary, the fresh food floor on basement level 2 of Hankyu Umeda Main Store is putting on a special hands-on lineup from Wednesday, August 19 to Sunday, August 23, 2026. Highlights include a mock fish auction and a tuna butchering show that bring the energy of a fish market indoors, produce shipped directly from Akita Prefecture, and a marché featuring producers who practice "Nofuku" — agriculture-welfare collaboration — for a total of 16 kinds of content to see, touch, and taste.
Event Overview
Event: Umeda Marche
Period: August 19 (Wednesday) – 23 (Sunday), 2026
Venue: Hankyu Umeda Main Store, Basement Level 2 Fresh Food Floor
Anniversary Specials: A Tuna Butchering Show and Mock Fish Auction Bring Market Energy to the Department Store Basement
The fresh food floor is hosting special demonstrations and hands-on programs to mark the occasion. まぐろ寺本 is holding a live butchering and sales demonstration of farmed bluefin tuna, the dried and salted fish shop 塩干魚 大一 is running a chirimen-jako (dried baby sardines) weight-guessing sale aimed at families with children, and the fish vendor 魚の北辰 is putting on a mock fresh-fish auction that lets visitors feel the energy of a real market — a lineup designed to be enjoyed across generations.
まぐろ寺本: farmed bluefin tuna butchering demonstration and sale (August 22 (Saturday) only, sales begin at 11:30 AM)
塩干魚 大一: chirimen-jako weight-guessing sale (August 19 (Wednesday) only, 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM)
魚の北辰: mock fresh-fish auction (August 21 (Friday) only, from 3:00 PM)
The lineup also brings in produce shipped directly from Akita Prefecture, including edamame harvested that morning and babahera ice cream.
JA Akita Namahage: edamame harvested that morning (190 g), ¥432 (sales begin around 1:00 PM)
児玉冷菓 (Oga City): babahera ice cream (1 serving), ¥601
8 Producers Practicing "Nofuku" Agriculture-Welfare Collaboration Join the Marche
Nofuku (agriculture-welfare collaboration) brings farming and social welfare together, giving people with disabilities and other diverse individuals a way to build confidence and a sense of purpose by taking an active role in agriculture and related work. Nofuku is a platform where diverse people come together — the name itself reflects the value created by combining "Nou" (nature, agriculture, forestry, and fisheries) and "Fuku" (people, welfare). With the aim of widening the circle of Nofuku projects that anyone can join, creating new value, and building a society where everyone can live comfortably, 8,949 organizations nationwide — including agricultural corporations, social welfare corporations, and private companies — are engaged in Nofuku efforts as of March 2026.
よろしい茸工房 (Osaka): fresh cultivated shiitake mushrooms
和歌山県セルプセンター (Wakayama): mini tomato juice
CuRA！〈チュラ〉 (Niigata): assorted herbal teas
Since it began last August, Umeda Marche has been held every month with the aim of creating a place where visitors can see, touch, and taste a wide range of ingredients while enjoying conversation with producers and salespeople. The hope is that learning directly about the appeal of seasonal ingredients and the thoughts behind them will bring more smiles to customers' everyday tables. For this 1st-anniversary edition, the market introduces hands-on programs that further expand the enjoyment of food, along with its Nofuku efforts, proposing a new direction for the marché going forward.
