Japan’s famous onsen hot springs were long considered unexportable, until an idea struck Naoki Mita: What if he could condense them like espresso coffee?
Mita’s Tokyo-based venture firm, Le Furo, has invented a technology it calls “craft onsen” — whereby hot spring ingredients are extracted and filtered into an ultra-high concentration.
Le Furo is seeking to use that patented technology to export Japan’s hot springs overseas, with a view toward opening several onsen facilities in the Gulf region next year.
Photo: AFP
Transporting hot springs overseas long seemed logistically impossible because of the sheer volume of water involved, as well as their susceptibility to germs, but with Le Furo’s invention, “just like you extract coffee as espresso, we grind the mineral resources to fine, sand-like powders,” Mita said.
Many commercially available “onsen powders” are synthetic and put an emphasis on mimicking the relaxing color and scent, and do not necessarily contain the necessary ingredients, the entrepreneur said.
Only after solid metals such as iron, magnesium and zinc dissolve into water does it become possible to chemically resemble onsen and recreate the therapeutic effect, he said.
Le Furo’s technology sticks to the natural soil and minerals of hot spring sources, and uses a special method to make them soluble in water.
Its “craft onsen” concentrate comes in bottles or small tanks, which can then be distributed and poured into water in other countries to feel like the real thing.
Onsens — bath houses where patrons relax naked together in hot spring water of various temperatures — are a major domestic industry in Japan beloved by locals and tourists.
As of 2021, Japan was home to 28,000 confirmed hot spring sources, the Japanese Ministry of the Environment said.
Le Furo is setting its sights particularly on countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Saudi Arabia, where “water is considered a more precious resource than oil,” Mita said.
“Here in Japan, we have this culture of soaking ourselves in a good, long bath to attain better health — that’s the kind of story that I believe [other countries] will show great interest in,” he said.
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