Koiwai Farm is the birthplace of dairy farming. About 300 mother cows and calves live here, and some of the raw milk produced every day is commercialized at the Milk Hall Dairy Factory.
Nine buildings on the premises of the Kaminaru Cowshed, including four active cowsheds built between 1908 and 1935 and two silos said to be the oldest in Japan, have been designated as National Important Cultural Properties.
There are viewing stations in the No. 1 and No. 3 cowsheds, where visitors can watch the cows in action. You can also see the cows relaxing outside the barns until around 10:00 in the morning.
*Please note that the end of grazing may be earlier depending on the weather. Please understand this in advance.
Also, behind the barn is a monument to a poem by Kenji Miyazawa, inscribed with a famous passage from his masterpiece “Koiwai Farm.
It is no longer open for this season. The next opening will be after April 2025.
(November 22, 2024, Koiwai Farm Makibaen)