Hello, writer of Yoshikawa Ayaka.

Every July, mango harvest reaches its peak in Okinawa Prefecture, and it is lined up at supermarkets and souvenir shops. When buying a popular mango as a summer souvenir in Okinawa, the place I recommend is the Farmers Market.

The Farmers Market is a JA direct seller of agricultural products. There are 11 locations in Okinawa Prefecture, and since the farmers directly bring in the harvested crops, you can purchase fresh vegetables and fruits at low prices.

Farmer's Market, which has a large selection of mangoes, Itoman "Umanchu Market"

Umanchu Market, which has the largest selection of mangoes in the Farmers Market, is located in Itoman Roadside Station. If you run south for about 20 minutes from Naha Airport, you will be able to see the roadside station information.

The parking lot can hold 390 cars at the roadside station and the whole Itoman. When I checked the license plates of the cars parked in the parking lot, about one-third were rented cars. It seems that many customers are coming from outside the prefecture. Everyone's aim at this time is still mango.

When you enter the store, you can see local vegetables and fruits from Itoman. Let's take a look at the mango sales floor.

All of the cosmetic boxes are displayed with vinyl on them, so you can choose and buy anything you like with your own eyes. Since the name of the producer is also written on the box, you can say that you bought it from the same producer this year because it tasted good last year.

There are mangoes in packs as well as those in gift boxes. Some are sold at a special price because they are too ripe or slightly scratched, so this is recommended for home use.

Mango Festival is held every weekend on July

The Mango Festival is held on the weekend of July every year, and 1/4 of the large sales floor is the mango sales floor. The feature of the Umanchu market is that there are many mangoes sold. Furthermore, since the producers bring it in directly, the selling price is lower than that of supermarkets and souvenir shops.

At the tasting corner right next to the entrance, a clerk demonstrates how to peel off mango. There were always crowds in this corner. It seems that the festival is held once or twice a day during the festival.

Every customer is serious about choosing mango. Many people buy many boxes at once, and the mangoes are selling with great speed.

After a while, an announcement stood in the store saying, "The import will begin from now", and the producer appeared with a new mango box. From what I heard, it seems that the mango corners are never empty because they carry in many times a day at this time. Please purchase with confidence.

Information on shipping methods and fares outside the prefecture

At the time of normal business, there is a delivery reception inside the store, but on this day it was a mango festival, so there was a delivery reception tent outside the store to avoid confusion.

For shipping, first write the shipping slip and take it with the mango purchased at the cash register in the store to the shipping counter.

Charges vary depending on weight and destination. Please note that mangoes will be shipped on cool flights. It should be noted that during the Mango Festival period, if there is a mango in the package to be shipped, the shipping fee will be 100 yen discount and it will be a good deal. This is nice.

Last year, I shipped mangoes from the Umanchu Market to the outside of the prefecture and received favorable reviews from my family and friends, saying that it was delicious! If you come to Okinawa during the summer, why not try the sweet mango that you can only eat during this time as a souvenir.

[Basic information]
​ ​Farmers Market Itoman "Umanchu Market"
​ ​4-20 Nishizaki-cho, Itoman-shi
​ ​TEL: 098-992-6510
​ ​Business hours: 9:00 to 19:00
​ ​Regular holiday: New Year 3 days, Old Bon 1 day
​ ​Parking lot: Available