Bread makes the world go round

Japan

The first bread known to be made by a Japanese for Japanese was prepared by Egawa Hidetatsu in 1842. In charge of the Tokugawa Shogunate’s coastal defenses around Tokyo Bay, Hidetatsu baked hard bread as provisions for soldiers—and also constructed an early reverberatory furnace in Izunokuni, Shizuoka Prefecture, which is now a World Heritage Site.

Bread became more commonly eaten as Japan underwent rapid industrialisation during the Meiji Period (1868-1912), but it still didn’t catch on among the locals. However, in 1874, Yasubei Kimura created , buns stuffed with red bean or which was well-received. The continual success of Kimura’s bakery, Kimuraya Sohonten — which still stands today — is due to popularity. A boom in bread confections followed.