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On a Saturday evening in late July, Wine Aid for East Japan began, appropriately, with a toast. Now in its third year, the event, organized by professionals in the wine industry to raise money for charities in the Tohoku region, featured over 100 premium wines and a buffet showcasing ingredients from northeastern Japan. The opening remarks culminated in a catchy slogan expressing hope for Tohoku\u2019s recovery through food: Yo naoshi-wa, shoku naoshi<\/em> (Changing the way we eat to change the world).<\/p>\n While wine was the main draw of the event, the focus was on Tohoku\u2019s farming and fishing industries, which have continued to struggle with the effects of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. This year, Wine Aid\u2019s organizers had invited a handful of agricultural producers from Miyagi and Iwate Prefectures to introduce their products and mingle with the crowd.<\/p>\n The idea, says event director Hiroshi Miyagawa, is to \u201cuse food as a means of encouraging financial recovery\u201d and to give consumers a chance to \u201ctalk face-to-face with producers.\u201d Guests murmured appreciatively as they tucked into plates piled high with rosy-pink slices of roast short-horn beef from Iwate Prefecture, baked salmon in cream sauce and squid-ink paella made with seafood from the Minamisanriku area.<\/p>\n At the back of the banquet hall, Hiroyuki Takahashi, president of Tohoku Kaikon, a nonprofit that promotes the region\u2019s food culture, passed out copies of \u201cTohoku Taberu Tsushin,\u201d the organization\u2019s monthly magazine. Takahashi also spoke with people about the current situation in the tsunami-stricken areas. Although oyster beds off the coast of northern Japan were almost completely destroyed in 2011, he says that overall conditions are improving.<\/p>\n \u201cThe sea is in better shape now than even before the disaster. The water is clean, and soil that has flowed into it has enriched the ocean floor with nutrients,\u201d he told me.<\/p>\n Takahashi remains \u201coptimistic\u201d but notes that the fishermen and farmers in Tohoku rely on markets in major urban areas such as Tokyo. \u201cThe producers are getting back on their feet, and if people in Tokyo eat more foods from Tohoku, it will help the industry flourish,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n All of the proceeds from the Wine Aid event are donated to charity organizations based in Tohoku: the Foundation for Cooperative Community Creation, which offers assistance to seniors; and two organizations that concentrate on providing resources for children, the Ashinaga Foundation and the Peace Project. Last year, Wine Aid raised \u00a52 million, and tickets for this year\u2019s event were nearly sold out.<\/p>\n But volunteer Mitsy Murata, a sommelier at the wine-distribution company St. Helena 1934, points out that long-term support for recovery efforts is essential: \u201cIt\u2019s difficult because people don\u2019t have the same feeling as they did at the time of the earthquake, but our theme is, \u2018Do not forget, and keep working,\u2019 \u201d she said.<\/p>\n Miyagawa said that the organizers of the Wine Aid event intend to continue the program for as long as possible. \u201cIf everyone can do what they can, no matter how small, it can help speed recovery in Tohoku. For me, that\u2019s wine, but I think everyone can find something to contribute,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n Melinda Joe is an American journalist in Tokyo and a certified wine and sake professional. She blogs at tokyodrinkingglass.blogspot.com<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter @MelindaJoe.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n