Edamame are soybeans that are harvested while still immature. The main market for this crop is Japan, whose residents consume about 140,000 metric tons per year. Half of this demand is met by domestic production, the other half by imported frozen edamame.
Taiwan has long been a dependable production base for Japan’s imported edamame. It all started back in the 1970s, when some Japanese entrepreneurs brought edamame to Taiwan and signed contracts with local farmers for trial planting. But it was only when new improved varieties were tried out that large-scale cultivation proved successful.
Because the Japanese market is so stable, Taiwan has been able to count on it for revenues of over NT$100 million per year. To improve varieties and lower costs, the World Vegetable Center, located in Tainan, began preliminary research in new varieties, and in 1983 the Kaohsiung District Agricultural Research and Extension Station began to invest in variety improvement, sequentially producing edamame cultivars christened Kaohsiung #1, #2, #3, and #5.
A native of the Kaohsiung’s Qishan, right in the heart of edamame territory, Chou Kuo-lung was never a stranger to this veggie. Since taking charge of edamame research in 2001, he has led the way in producing, through hybridization, Kaohsiung #6 through #10, as well as the brown-colored and taro-scented Kaohsiung #11, which came onto the market last year.
Of these, Kaohsiung #9 has come to dominate cultivation in Taiwan, with 80% of edamame farmland devoted to this strain. It has also been brought “privately” by some Taiwanese businesspeople to mainland China, where it is also widely grown for export to Japan. Hou Zaobai, who runs a large farm, says that Kaohsiung #9 “really bears well!” Yields are, he roughly estimates, about 10% higher than other strains.
Though the market response has been gratifying, Chou has not gotten complacent. A perfectionist, he thinks that Kaohsiung #9’s texture is a little too firm, so he has advised processing factories to extend the duration of the steam treatment to soften the soybeans up a bit more.
Processing firms and farmers have already signed contracts to plant this fall a small amount of Kaohsiung #11. Few people know that this is a kind of “comeback” success for Chou. This is because he had a dismal failure with Kaohsiung #10, which likewise has a taro-influenced aroma.
It had originally been hoped that Kaohsiung #10 would replace a Japanese strain that had been cultivated in Taiwan for over 20 years. Unfortunately, “in the hybridization process a lot of the flavor was lost—eight years of research down the drain!” With this lesson in mind, he invested more time studying the structure of the aroma of edamame, and last year finally came up with Kaohsiung #11.
From his kendo training, Chou knows full well that “timing is more important than speed.” On average he comes out with a new variety about once every two years, a pace designed not only to meet consumer demand but to foil pirate growers. As he explains: “Even if the variety gets out into the open market, it will take the other guys at least three years to prepare seeds.” By then, he will have gotten through another two-year cycle and produced another new variety, leaving pirate growers in the dust.
On the other hand, you can’t introduce new varieties too quickly. Chou says it is a lot like pop music. If a singer comes out with a new album, you’ve got to allow time for the audience to get familiar with the hit songs before you put out another album. In short, “You’ve got to respect the rhythm of the market.”
Understanding of consumer trends sets Chou apart from the typical agronomist. Combine that with his kendo training, and you’ve got a man with command of both strategy and tactics: a true “field” marshal!
Researcher Chou Kuo-lung has developed numerous varieties of edamame, including Kaohsiung #9, which has swept the Japanese market.
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