New Tencha Processing Plant Opens in Miyazaki — Boosting Japan's Matcha Supply Chain

Japan's matcha industry is making a significant infrastructure investment to keep pace with surging global demand. In May 2026, Miyazaki City became home to the largest tencha processing facility in Miyazaki Prefecture — a development that signals a new era for Japanese tea production and the international buyers who depend on it.

A Farmer-Led Initiative in Miyazaki

The new facility was established by Miyazaki Ichachaen (みやざき一茶園), a cooperative founded by 13 tea farming households across Miyazaki Prefecture. Construction was completed with partial funding from the Japanese national government, and the plant entered full commercial operation in early May 2026. This marks the first dedicated tencha processing facility in Miyazaki City.

Tea leaves are sourced from contracted tea fields in Miyazaki City, Saito City, and Kobayashi City, then centrally managed and processed at the new plant. The facility is projected to produce approximately 300 metric tons of tencha per year — making it the largest tencha processing operation in the prefecture.

What Is Tencha?

Tencha (碾茶) is the minimally processed leaf form of matcha. After harvest, shade-grown tea leaves are steamed to halt oxidation, then dried in a specialized tencha furnace without rolling — a critical distinction that preserves the leaf blade intact. The dried leaves are then de-stemmed and de-veined, leaving only the soft blade tissue. This final product, tencha, is later stone-ground into the fine powder known as matcha. In its tencha form, the tea can be stored under refrigeration for an extended period without quality loss, giving processors and wholesalers flexibility in inventory management.

Why This Facility Was Built Now

Takeshi Koura, representative of Miyazaki Ichachaen, cited two intersecting forces behind the project. Speaking at the facility's completion, he said:

"The global matcha boom is driving strong demand for matcha sweets and lattes. But at the same time, our farming community is aging, and more farmers are finding it difficult to keep producing. We built this tencha factory to extend the harvesting season and create a working environment where farmers can continue without overexertion."

Japan's tea farming sector is facing a well-documented labor shortage driven by an aging agricultural workforce. By centralizing tencha processing at a modern, mechanized facility, Miyazaki Ichachaen aims to reduce the physical burden on individual farmers while scaling output to meet international demand.

What This Means for U.S. Matcha Buyers

For cafés, food service operators, and wholesale buyers in the United States importing matcha from Japan, this development is a positive supply-side signal. The addition of 300 metric tons of annual tencha capacity from a new regional source — outside the traditionally dominant Uji (Kyoto) and Nishio (Aichi) production zones — contributes to supply diversification. Miyazaki's warm climate and established tea farming tradition position it as an increasingly viable origin for culinary and food-grade matcha used in lattes, baked goods, and confectionery applications.

The cooperative model also reflects a broader structural shift in Japanese tea production: consolidating post-harvest processing into shared facilities to maintain consistent quality standards and traceability across multiple farm sources — both key considerations for importers managing supplier compliance and product specifications.

Miyazaki as an Emerging Matcha Origin

While Kyoto's Uji region remains the most internationally recognized matcha origin, prefectures such as Miyazaki, Kagoshima, and Shizuoka have been steadily expanding their tencha cultivation in response to global demand. The completion of Miyazaki's largest tencha plant reinforces the prefecture's ambition to become a meaningful contributor to Japan's matcha export capacity. For buyers seeking to expand their supplier network or reduce concentration risk in their sourcing, Miyazaki is a region worth monitoring closely.

Source: FNN Prime Online / TV Miyazaki, May 14, 2026
https://www.fnn.jp/articles/-/1043267