Hokkaido Places

Town Tokachi Subprefecture

Shihoro 士幌町

しほろちょう

A farming town in northern Tokachi where the local agricultural cooperative built its own potato-processing plants and co-founded a dairy company. Today Shihoro is known for potatoes, Shihoro Beef and a brown "moor" hot spring.

Population (2020 Census)
5,848
Area
259.19 km²
District
Kato District (河東郡)
Official website
www.shihoro.jp

Known for

  • Potatoes and a farmer-owned processing chain. In 1960 neighbouring cooperatives joined Shihoro's cooperative starch plant. The Shihoro Potato Facilities Council (士幌馬鈴薯施設運営協議会), today made up of five JAs in four towns, shares the potato facilities; JA Shihoro dates the council to 19601011. In 1973 JA Shihoro opened its own potato-chip and French-fry plants11. A JA plant in Saitama now makes Calbee potato chips for the Tokyo market12.
  • Shihoro Beef (しほろ牛). About 28,000 cattle a year are raised and shipped under three brands: Shihoro Beef, Shihoro Beef X (Cross) and Shihoro Beef Wakamaru13. "Shihoro Beef" has been a registered regional collective trademark (地域団体商標) since 201911.
  • Dairy. About 60 dairy farms keep roughly 10,000 cows and produce about 100,000 t of milk a year. All of it goes to Yotsuba Dairy (よつ葉乳業), which local producers helped found in 196714.
  • Ōta Kan'ichi (太田寛一). He headed the Shihoro cooperative from 1953 to 1982 and later chaired Hokuren and Zen-Noh. JA Shihoro's memorial hall presents his achievements. It was built to hand down "Shihoro-ism" (士幌イズム), the legacy of the town's farming pioneers, to young people15.
  • Shihoro Onsen Plaza Ryokufū (しほろ温泉プラザ緑風). A plant-derived moor hot spring with brown water. It is also a Michi-no-Eki and reopened after a full renovation in April 202516.
  • Michi-no-Eki Pia21 Shihoro. The roadside station's building has a roof modelled on a cow barn. Visitors come for Shihoro Beef burgers and "Kan'ichi" fries17.
  • Pioneers from Gifu. The town traces its founding to 43 households from Gifu Prefecture who arrived in 1898. Today it is a sister city of Mino, Gifu118.
  • Shihoro Highland Nupuka no Sato (士幌高原ヌプカの里). A highland at 600 m with cottages, a campsite and wide views over the Tokachi Plain19.

Sights & activities

Nature & scenery

  • Shihoro Highland Nupuka no Sato (士幌高原ヌプカの里), 21-173 Kami-Otofuke. The highland sits at 600 m, about 20 minutes by car from the town centre. It has views over the Tokachi Plain and good stargazing on clear nights, and it is closed in winter1917. The observation deck looks across a 180-degree view of the Hidaka Mountains and the Tokachi Plain. Nearby are an alpine plant garden and the Nupuka pasture, where dairy cattle graze28.
  • Hakuun-zan (白雲山, 1,186 m on GSI maps). A hike from the highland; the summit itself is in neighbouring Kamishihoro27. It looks down on Lake Shikaribetsu, and pikas may be seen on the way28.
  • Asahi Park "Hotaru no Sato" (朝陽公園ホタルの里), Shimo-Oribe. Firefly breeding ponds, with Heike fireflies from late July to early August38. To protect the fireflies, visitors are asked to stay out of the park outside the viewing period37.

Onsen

  • Shihoro Onsen Plaza Ryokufū (しほろ温泉プラザ緑風), Shimo-Oribe. The water is sodium-chloride, 49.6 °C at the source, and brown from plant matter. Some baths use 100% free-flowing source water. There are open-air baths, dry saunas, jet and electric baths and a foot-massage bath lined with Tokachi obsidian (十勝石). The spring holds a POLA skin-science certification46. Day-bathing for non-residents costs ¥700 for adults (¥600 on weekdays) and ¥350 for elementary pupils (¥300 on weekdays); adult town residents pay ¥50046. Full details are under Roadside stations below.

Museums & heritage

  • Nōkyō Kinenkan, 225-20 Shihoro (weekdays only)15.
  • Traditional Agriculture Preservation Hall and Mino no Ie, 86 Naka-Shihoro Kansen21.
  • Shihoro Traffic Park, with the preserved Shihoro Station, at Nishi 2-sen 157, Shihoro45.

Outdoor & seasonal activities

  • Camping and cottages at Nupuka no Sato.
    • Open mid-April to late October, depending on snowmelt and frozen water pipes.
    • Campsite: about 50 unassigned tent pitches on a gentle slope, ¥500 per pitch per night. No bookings are taken.
    • Cottages: six, each sleeping 6–11 people, at ¥8,000 per cottage plus ¥1,000 per person per night (¥1,500 during Golden Week, July and August).
    • Cottage fees are paid in advance at check-in, cash or PayPay only. Since April 2026 Hokkaido's accommodation tax is charged on top, in cash47.
  • Park golf. Shihoro Onsen has an internationally certified course with 36 holes on four courses. Play is free from mid-April to mid-November48.
  • Fruit picking and farm experiences. Haskap picking in early summer and sea-buckthorn picking in August (see festivals). The tourism association also lists a potato-digging experience, cheese-making at a cheese workshop and a sport-fishing park4950.
  • Cycling. "Chari-tabi Shihoro" (チャリたびしほろ) rents out bicycles50.

Food experiences

  • Lunch at Pia21 (Shihoro Beef and Kan'ichi fries).
  • Genghis Khan grilled lamb and Shihoro Beef at the grill house at Nupuka no Sato. Booking is required, and Shihoro Beef must be ordered a week ahead51.
  • Farm-view cafés and diners listed by the tourism association, including Farm Kitchen Sakura Cafe and the ranch restaurant Makiba no Restaurant Country Road50.

Roadside stations (Michi-no-Eki)

Pia21 Shihoro (道の駅ピア21しほろ)

  • Location: 134-1 Nishi 2-sen, Aza Shihoro (河東郡士幌町字士幌西2線134番地1), on National Routes 241 and 27417, close to the town centre and surrounded by farmland32. Nupuka no Sato is about 20 minutes' drive away17.

  • Hours: 9:00–17:00, extended to 18:00 during Golden Week and Obon. Opening hours for each part17:

    • PIA21 SHOP: 9:00–17:00
    • Nijiiro Shokudō: 11:00–15:00
    • CAFÉ Kan'ichi: 9:00–17:00 (last food orders 16:30)

    Closed 31 December – 5 January; dates vary17. As of September 2026 — check before visiting.

  • Shops & products:

    • Potato chips made for growers (生産者還元用ポテトチップス)
    • Potato daifuku
    • Sea-buckthorn soda17
    • Original products made from haskap and sea buckthorn
    • Sakura Kōbō yogurt and Kikuya Ryokan smoked turkey
    • "Farmers' share" vegetable market (農家のおすそわけ野菜市)
    • Handmade goods and processed foods made by residents3252
    • Online shop: shop.pia21shihoro.jp32

  • Food:

    • Nijiiro Shokudō (にじいろ食堂): Shihoro Beef bought as whole carcasses. Shihoro Beef "kensaki" steak (しほろ牛剣先ステーキ, 200 g, ¥3,200) and kensaki hamburg steak (150 g, ¥1,750), served on a real pointed shovel used as the hot plate; beef-bowl set (¥980), roast-beef bowl set (¥1,500), rainbow vegetable curry, and a coriander rice bowl made with coriander grown in Shihoro3217.
    • CAFÉ Kan'ichi (CAFÉ寛一): 100% Shihoro Beef burgers, Kan'ichi fries, fish and chips, an "old-fashioned" pudding and several coffee blends3217.
    • Takeout: milk soft-serve (Furuta Farm milk), Kan'ichi coffee-drizzle soft-serve, Shihoro Beef steamed buns, shumai and minced-meat cutlets, and the smoked corn-cheese bun32.

  • Facilities:

    • Parking: 148 cars and 11 large vehicles, plus 3 covered accessible spaces
    • EV charger, Wi-Fi and a dog run
    • Toilets with warm-water bidet seats, an accessible toilet and an ostomate toilet
    • Nursing room, diaper-changing table and kids' space
    • Information corner, direct farm sales, credit card and other cashless payment (QR-code payment not accepted)17
    • A 120-inch digital signboard introducing Shihoro, and a play area inside the rest zone32
    • The station listing does not say whether any toilets are open 24 hours.

  • Notes:

    • Registered 11 April 1997 as Hokkaido Michi-no-Eki No. 4417.
    • The mansard roof is modelled on a cow barn17. The station moved to its present site and reopened on 23 April 2017 as a showcase for Shihoro food2417.
    • The national land ministry (MLIT) supported the move as a priority ("jūten") Michi-no-Eki. The new station was also planned as a hub for long-distance, local and community buses24.
    • Stamp available during opening hours only, not on closed days17.
    • The Shihoro Chamber of Commerce runs the station as designated manager42.

Shihoro Onsen (道の駅しほろ温泉)

  • Location: 134 Nishi 2-sen, Aza Shimo-Oribe (河東郡士幌町字下居辺西2線134番地), on Prefectural Road Honbetsu–Shihoro Line (道道本別士幌線)16. It is about 11 km (15 minutes) from the town centre53. The foot-bath terrace faces Sakura-yama16. The firefly park and the haskap orchard (200 m south) are close by1635.

  • Hours: Opening hours for each part16:

    • Station: 10:00–21:00
    • Shop: 10:00–20:30
    • Restaurant: 12:00–15:00 (last order 14:30)
    • Day bathing: 12:00–22:00 (last entry 21:00)
    • Foot bath: 11:00–20:00, year-round and free

    Open every day, apart from one or two unscheduled maintenance days a year16. The operator's home page gives the same year-round foot-bath hours26, but its roadside-station page still gives late April to late October, 9:00–17:0048. As of September 2026 — check before visiting.

  • Shops & products: Local products, original skincare made with the onsen water, and Ryokufū no Yu bath salts (¥190 for one bath, ¥1,500 for ten)16.

  • Food: Restaurant Beriōre (ベリオーレ, lunch only for day visitors). Day-bath lunch sets include a Shihoro Beef sukiyaki set meal, a roast-beef bowl and beef stew16. For hotel guests there are Shihoro Beef dinner courses, such as the five-tier "meat treasure box" (お肉の玉手箱5段重), and a breakfast buffet54.

  • Facilities:

    • Moor onsen with open-air, sauna and jet baths (fees under Sights & activities)46
    • Hotel with 15 rooms: 10 Japanese-modern twins, 3 barrier-free rooms and 2 maisonettes26
    • 36-hole park golf course (free); rental clubs ¥500 for day visitors48
    • Wi-Fi, kids' space, nursing room, accessible and ostomate toilets16
    • Payment: cards and cashless payment (d-Barai and PayPay only) are accepted in the shop; the ticket machines take cash only16
    • Parking: 104 cars and 9 large vehicles according to the Michi-no-Eki site16. The operator gives 111 cars, 12 large vehicles and 4 accessible spaces (127 total), and says the toilets and parking can be used 24 hours48. The Michi-no-Eki site adds that the bidet-seat and ostomate toilets are not available around the clock16. The station listing mentions no EV charging.

  • Notes:

    • Registered 10 August 2006 as Hokkaido Michi-no-Eki No. 9516; the town site also says August 200623. The operator's site gives September 2002 instead48, but the official Hokkaido Michi-no-Eki site and the town both give 2006. The onsen facility itself opened in October 200123.
    • Reopened after a full renovation on 18 April 20251626.
    • Stamp available during opening hours16.
    • A free shuttle bus runs to the onsen on Mondays and Fridays for town residents55.

Getting there & around

  • Rail: There has been no passenger rail since the Shihoro Line closed in 1987. The nearest station is JR Obihiro (Nemuro Main Line)3122. Sapporo to Obihiro takes about 2 hours 20 minutes by train53.
  • Bus: About 55 minutes from Obihiro Station on Tokachi Bus routes 49 and 51 or Takushoku Bus routes 61 and 6253.
  • Car:
    • From Obihiro: 28 km (about 35 minutes) on National Route 241
    • From Sapporo: 212 km (about 3 hours 30 minutes); leave the Dōtō Expressway at Otofuke-Obihiro IC (音更帯広IC)
    • From Kushiro: 139 km (about 2 hours 15 minutes)
    • From Asahikawa: 162 km via Furano (about 3 hours) or 170 km via Mikuni Pass (about 3 hours 10 minutes)53
  • Air: Tokachi-Obihiro Airport is 54 km away, about 90 minutes via National Routes 236 and 24153.
  • Local distances from the town centre: Shihoro Onsen 11 km (15 min), Shihoro Highland 17 km (20 min), Lake Shikaribetsu 35 km (40 min)53.

Practical tips

  • Best seasons. Most events fall between late April and October. Early July brings the Tokachi region's first fireworks, late July to early August the fireflies, mid-August the 7000-nin festival, September the potato festival and mid-October the harvest festival3637414244.
  • Seasonal closures. Nupuka no Sato does not operate in winter, and its campsite runs from mid-April to late October1947. The tourism association lists Nupuka as closed December–March and on Tuesdays from April to November, except public holidays, Golden Week and from the third week of July through August50. The Nōkyō Kinenkan is closed on weekends15. Pia21 closes 31 December – 5 January17. Plaza Ryokufū has no regular closing day16.
  • Tourist information. The Tokachi Shihoro Town Tourism Association has its office on the first floor of the Shihoro Community Center, inside the town's industrial promotion section (tel. 01564-5-5213)49. Pia21 also has a corner with leaflets on Shihoro and neighbouring towns32.
  • Winter. Temperatures can drop below −20 °C, and seasonal winds are strong2. Expect snow and ice on the roads in winter.
  • Picking fruit. For sea-buckthorn picking, wear protective clothing: the bushes are home to horseflies and bees39.
  • Wildlife. As anywhere in rural Hokkaido, watch for Ezo deer on roads at dusk. Check local bear advisories before hiking Hakuun-zan or camping on the highland.

More about Shihoro

At a glance
Field Details
Type Town (町)
Subprefecture Tokachi (十勝総合振興局)
District Kato District (河東郡)1
Population 5,848 at the 2020 National Census (1 Oct 2020; 2,891 men and 2,957 women)2. 5,587 people in 2,768 households on the resident register at the end of August 20263
Area 259.19 km² (GSI, as of 1 Apr 2026)4. The town measures 25.6 km east–west and 17.1 km north–south2
Density About 21.6 people/km² (latest register figure ÷ GSI area); 22.6/km² at the 2020 Census
Municipal history Pioneer settlement began in 1898. The area split from Otofuke Village as Kawakami Village (川上村) in 1921, was renamed Shihoro Village in 1926 and became a town in 19625. Part of the Oribe (居辺) area of neighbouring Kawai Village (now Ikeda) was added in 1925, and Ikeda's Shimo-Oribe (下居辺) district in 1933. Kamishihoro split off from Shihoro in 19315
Neighboring municipalities Shikaoi, Otofuke, Kamishihoro, Ikeda, Honbetsu5
Symbols Tree: Daimyo oak (カシワ). Bird: common cuckoo (カッコウ). Flower: lily of the valley (スズラン)6. The town emblem is a stylized 士 drawn as a great bird taking flight above a circle that stands for harmony and unity7
Mascot Daichi-kun (大地くん), the town's official image character, created in 1991 for the 70th anniversary of the town's founding. Its body is shaped like the character 士 and carries a heart, a star, the Nupuka mountains and green nature8. The Shihoro Chamber of Commerce's shopping points card (だいちくんカード) is named after it9
Official website https://www.shihoro.jp/

Name origin

The town is named after the Shihoro River (士幌川)5. Sources disagree on what the Ainu original meant:

  • "Vast land." The town's official explanation traces the name to the Ainu word shūwōrō (シュウウォロー), said to mean "vast land" (広大な土地). Over time the pronunciation shifted to "Shihoro"1.
  • "Rapids like a waterfall." The Hokkaido Government's Ainu place-name list records the explorer Matsuura Takeshirō's form Suporo (スポロ). He glossed it as "a torrent like a waterfall" (滝の如き急流) and described great rocks forming a single rapid there20.
  • "Pot river." The same list gives Nagata Hōsei's reading su-oru-pet (スオルペッ), "pot river". It rests on a legend that Ainu fleeing a battle left their cooking pot soaking in the river. Nagata held that the current name "Shihoro River" was a mistake taken from Matsuura's map spelling シユポロ. The later scholar Yamada Hidezō called the name's meaning unknown. He added that if the legend lies behind it, the form would be su-horo-pet ("river where a pot was soaked in water"). The list rates its confidence in this entry at the low level "C"20.

History
  • Before settlement. The sources used here say little about Ainu life in the Shihoro area (see Ainu heritage). Development of Tokachi Province only gathered pace after the Hokkaido Agency (北海道庁) was set up in 18865.
  • 1898: the Mino pioneers. In March 1898 a party of 43 households from the Mino Kaikon Gōshi Gaisha (美濃開墾合資会社) arrived at Naka-Shihoro (中士幌) and began clearing land. The company had been formed in Gifu Prefecture after the Nōbi earthquake (濃尾大震災) and repeated floods there, with the aim of making a fresh start in Hokkaido1. The Traditional Agriculture Preservation Hall at Naka-Shihoro marks the site where the town began21.
  • c. 1906: more settlers. Eight years later, 100 settlement lots were opened along the Otofuke River in the Shihoro district, and the population grew steadily1.
  • 1921–1931: a village of its own. In 1921 the area split from Otofuke Village as Kawakami Village. In 1926 it was renamed Shihoro Village. Kamishihoro Village split off in 19315.
  • 1925–1987: the Shihoro Line. The national railway's Shihoro Line (士幌線) opened on 10 December 1925. It ran north from Obihiro through the town and closed on 23 March 198722. The Hokkaido Takushoku Railway (北海道拓殖鉄道) and the Oribe colonial tramway (殖民軌道居辺線) also once ran through the town; both have long since closed5.
  • 1931–1973: the cooperative takes over processing. The Shihoro Village Industrial Union (士幌村産業組合) was founded in 1931, with 82 founding promoters. The farmers' association bought a starch factory in 1946, and the modern agricultural cooperative formed in 194811. According to JA Shihoro, in 1956 its cooperative became the first in Hokkaido to set up joint milk sales14. The producer-owned dairy Hokkaido Kyōdō Nyūgyō (北海道協同乳業, now Yotsuba Dairy) began operating in 1967. In 1973 the cooperative completed its potato-chip and French-fry plants11.
  • 1962: town status5.
  • 1987–1999. A meat-processing plant and a croquette factory opened in 198711. The sister-city tie with Mino, Gifu began on 1 May 199418. Pia21 Shihoro opened in 1997. In 1999 the authorities decided to stop building the Shihoro Kōgen Road (士幌高原道路) over the highland5.
  • 2000s–present. Shihoro Onsen Plaza Ryokufū opened in October 200123 and was registered as a Michi-no-Eki in 200616. Pia21 moved to its present site and reopened on 23 April 201724. The town marked its 100th anniversary in 2021, counting from the 1921 split25. JA Shihoro opened a new head office and livestock centre that year11. Shihoro Onsen Plaza Ryokufū reopened after a full renovation on 18 April 202526.

Geography & climate
  • Location and terrain. Shihoro lies in the north of the Tokachi Plain, at about 43°10′N, 143°15′E. The Otofuke River (音更川) runs through the flat central part of the town2. In the northwest the land climbs into the Higashi-Taisetsu (東大雪) mountains. The highest peak is Higashi-Nupukaushi-nupuri (東ヌプカウシヌプリ, 1,252 m)26. To the east are the Sakura-yama (佐倉山) hills and river terraces along the Oribe River (居辺川)6. Sakura-yama itself is 294 m high, and the Shihoro River is another of the town's main rivers5. Most soils are volcanic ash2.
  • Land use. Fields cover 14,911 ha, or 58% of the town. Forest covers 4,726 ha (18%) and building land 868 ha (3%)6.
  • Highland. Shihoro Highland (士幌高原) sits at about 600 m19. One of the two trails up Hakuun-zan (白雲山) starts at Nupuka no Sato. The peak itself lies just across the border in Kamishihoro and is 1,186 m high on GSI maps27; the Nupuka no Sato site gives 1,187 m. The summit overlooks Lake Shikaribetsu (然別湖)28.
  • Climate. The climate is continental, with big swings between seasons. The mean annual temperature is 6.5 °C, and winter lows can fall below −20 °C. Snowfall is fairly light, but seasonal winds are frequent. Deep ground frost holds back spring fieldwork2.

Economy & industry

  • Farming is the core. About 60% of the town's land is farmland3. The main crop areas in 2023 were6:

    • Wheat: 2,312 ha
    • Potatoes: 2,047 ha
    • Sugar beet: 1,991 ha
    • Adzuki beans: 848 ha
    • Soybeans: 815 ha
    • Sweet corn: 616 ha
    • Kidney beans: 289 ha

    Together that is 8,918 ha. Fields are normally worked on a four-year rotation of potatoes, wheat, sugar beet, and beans or sweet corn29. JA Shihoro's FY2023 (令和5年度) volumes included 15,150 t of wheat (the Kitahonami variety, used for udon noodles), 128,905 t of sugar beet, 2,675 t of soybeans and 1,968 t of adzuki beans29.

  • Livestock. The town counted 60,721 beef cattle and 18,364 dairy cattle in FY20236. The town website gives rounded figures of about 60,000 and 20,0003. JA Shihoro counts about 10,000 dairy cows on around 60 farms, producing about 100,000 t of milk a year14.

  • Farmer-owned food processing. JA Shihoro's food factory in Shihoro has operated since FY1973. It makes snacks, frozen French fries, diced potato, potato croquettes, whole-kernel corn and retort foods. The JA also runs two plants outside Hokkaido:

    • Higashimatsuyama, Saitama (since FY1988): Calbee potato chips for the Tokyo market
    • Fukuchiyama, Kyoto (since FY1998): potato and pasta salads for Ajinomoto

    A meat plant run by the town development corporation (士幌町振興公社) processes about 11,000 head of Shihoro Beef a year12.

  • Potato varieties. Table potatoes include Danshaku (男爵), May Queen, Kitaakari, Tōya and Hikaru. Chip and fry varieties include Toyoshiro, Snowden and Kitahime. Konahime is grown for starch (katakuriko)10.

  • Commerce. The chamber of commerce counted 149 businesses in 2024. The largest groups were services (65), construction (31), retail (26) and manufacturing (10)6.

  • Tourism. Hokkaido's survey counted 385,100 visits to Shihoro in FY2025 (令和7年度), up 7.7% on the 357,600 of FY202430:

    • Day-trippers: 374,200
    • Overnight guests: 10,900
    • Visitors from outside Hokkaido: 35,600

    August is the busiest month, with 58,200 visits30.

  • Population trend. The Census population fell from 7,567 in 1970 to 5,848 in 202031. The resident-register count went from 7,210 in 1989 to 5,741 in 20246 and 5,587 by August 20263. Farm households fell from 523 in 1989 to 348 in 20246.

Local specialties
Specialty Category Details & where to get it
Shihoro Beef (しほろ牛) Beef Holstein steers raised in Shihoro to a set feeding manual. Shihoro Beef X (Cross) comes from a Japanese Black sire and a Holstein dam. Shihoro Beef Wakamaru (若丸) is shipped about six months younger for more tender meat. Sold at the A-Coop Shihoro store "ASPO" and at Pia21 Shihoro13
Shihoro Beef dishes Local dining At Pia21's Nijiiro Shokudō (にじいろ食堂), which buys whole carcasses: a 200 g "kensaki" steak (剣先ステーキ, ¥3,200) and a 150 g kensaki hamburg steak (¥1,750), both served on a real pointed shovel (剣先スコップ) used as the hot plate, plus a beef-bowl set (¥980) and a roast-beef bowl set (¥1,500)32. Lunch sets at Shihoro Onsen: sukiyaki set meal, roast-beef bowl and beef stew, each ¥2,400 including day bathing16
Potatoes (じゃがいも) Crop Table varieties such as Danshaku, May Queen and Kitaakari10. At Pia21: potato daifuku (じゃがいも大福), potato chips made for growers (生産者還元用ポテトチップス), Jagabeko croquettes (じゃがべこコロッケ) and potato-mochi skewers1732
Kan'ichi fries & coffee soft-serve Snacks Fries and a soft-serve topped with Kan'ichi-blend coffee at CAFÉ Kan'ichi (CAFÉ寛一) in Pia21. The café is named after cooperative leader Ōta Kan'ichi32
Milk soft-serve (ソフトクリームミルク) Dairy Made with milk from Furuta Farm (古田牧場) in Shihoro; sold at Pia2132
Smoked corn-cheese bun (燻しコーンチーズまん) Snack Bacon smoked by the long-running inn Kikuya Ryokan (きくや旅館), local sweet corn and cheese; sold at Pia21. The shop also stocks Kikuya's smoked turkey and yogurt from Sakura Kōbō (さくら工房)32
Sea buckthorn (シーベリー) and haskap Fruit Pia21 sells original products made from both, including a sea-buckthorn soda developed with Shihoro High School1732. Pick-your-own events are held in summer (see festivals below)
Wheat, beans, sugar beet Crops Kitahonami wheat. Beans: Yukihomare soybeans, Erimo adzuki and Taishō Kintoki kidney beans. Sugar beet29
Yotsuba dairy products Dairy All of Shihoro's milk goes to Yotsuba Dairy14. Yotsuba vanilla ice cream is one of the town's furusato nozei gifts33
Ryokufū no Yu bath salts (りょくふうの湯) Souvenir Bath powder based on the analysis of the onsen's own water: ¥190 for one bath, ¥1,500 for ten; sold at Shihoro Onsen16
Furusato nozei (ふるさと納税) gifts Gifts Featured gifts include a Shihoro Beef smoked set, Shihoro Beef off-cuts, a Pia21 daifuku set (potato and anko-butter), a 330 ml × 6 beer set called 旅のはじまりのビール, and a one-night stay for two with meals at Plaza Ryokufū. Donations go through Rakuten, Satofull, Furusato Choice and Furunavi33

Culture & festivals
Event When Highlights
Pia21 Shihoro Birthday Festival (道の駅ピア21しほろの誕生祭) Late April (25 Apr 2026) Celebrates the anniversary of Pia21's renovation, with a beef market, a wild-vegetable market, craft workshops, a giant birthday cake and candy scattering34
Haskap picking (ハスカップ狩り) Late June – early July (25 Jun – 5 Jul 2026) At the Shimo-Oribe orchard, 200 m south of Shihoro Onsen. Entry ¥600 for adults (¥500 for residents), free for ages 18 and under. Fruit costs ¥160 per 100 g, with a limit of 3 kg per person35
Shihoro Summer Festival Fireworks (しほろ夏祭り花火大会) Early July (4 Jul 2026) Billed as the earliest fireworks display in Tokachi. Held at the Community Plaza (コミュニティ広場), with stage shows and yosakoi dancing from 15:00 and fireworks from 20:0036
Firefly viewing (ホタル観賞会) Late July – early August (24 Jul – 2 Aug 2026) Heike fireflies at Asahi Park "Hotaru no Sato" (朝陽公園ホタルの里) in Shimo-Oribe, from 19:30 to 20:303738
Sea buckthorn picking (シーベリー狩り) August (8–30 Aug 2026, extended from 23 Aug because of a big crop) At Sakai Haskap Farm (酒井ハスカップ園), 9:00–15:00. Entry ¥500 for adults and ¥300 for elementary pupils (residents ¥200/¥100). Fruit costs ¥290 per 100 g. Not held in 2025, when the heat made the fruit drop early39
Shihoro 7000-nin no Matsuri (しほろ7000人のまつり) Mid-August (45th edition: 16 Aug 2026) The town's main summer festival, with a flower mikoshi40, at the Community Plaza in the town centre. A costume bon-odori dance follows a few days later (20 Aug 2026)41
Shihoro Jagaimo Matsuri (しほろじゃがいもまつり) September (8th edition: 19 Sep 2026) At Pia21 Shihoro: all-you-can-stuff potato bags, potato and curry stalls, and a contest for oddly shaped potatoes42
Tokachi Gravel (十勝グラベル) September (22 Sep 2026) A gravel-road cycling event starting from Otofuke that passes through Shihoro, Kamishihoro and Shikaoi43
Shihoro Harvest Festival (しほろ収穫祭) Mid-October (24th edition: Sun 18 Oct 2026) Held at the rink site in the town's rural sports park. A tasting market sells Shihoro Beef loin steak, oshiruko and udon, and visitors can stuff bags with potatoes and onions44

Museums and heritage.

  • Nōkyō Kinenkan (農協記念館). The cooperative's memorial hall was built for JA Shihoro's 60th anniversary. It covers the history of Shihoro farming and the work of Ōta Kan'ichi. Open 9:00–17:00, closed weekends and over New Year; free entry15.
  • Traditional Agriculture Preservation Hall and "Mino no Ie" (伝統農業保存伝承館・美濃の家). Built for the 90th anniversary of settlement to show children and visitors how the pioneers farmed. It stands in Naka-Shihoro, about 10 km south of the town centre, where the Gifu settlers first broke ground21.
  • Shihoro Traffic Park (士幌交通公園). Keeps the old Shihoro Station of the Shihoro Line as it was when trains still ran45.

Ainu heritage

The town's own account of its history begins with the 1898 settlement and mentions the Ainu only when explaining the town's name1. No record of Ainu settlements or sites in Shihoro, and no public facility focused on Ainu culture, was found for this entry (unverified). The Ainu past survives mainly in the town's name and its competing etymologies, which the Hokkaido Government's Ainu place-name list records (see Name origin)20.

Sister & friendship cities
  • Mino, Gifu Prefecture (美濃市, 岐阜県): domestic sister city since 1 May 1994. The tie reflects the Mino Kaikon company settlers who founded Shihoro in 1898181.
  • International: none found.

Notable people
  • Ōta Kan'ichi (太田寛一). Headed the Shihoro cooperative from 1953 to 1982, chaired Hokuren from 1972 to 1981 and Zen-Noh from 1977 to 1979, and ran Hokkaido Kyōdō Nyūgyō (now Yotsuba Dairy) from 1967 to 1969. JA Shihoro credits him with making farmer-run crop processing a reality ahead of the rest of Japan15.

Sources

Numbers in the text link to these sources. Figures as of 23 September 2026

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