The “Contemporary Consumer Research Seminar” in Toyo Gakuen University's Faculty of Business Administration is launching a project to grow wine grapes and ultimately produce wine using the university campus rooftop.
The initiative is attracting attention as an effort to explore new possibilities for agriculture and food culture in urban spaces.
About the Project
The project aims to use Toyo Gakuen University's campus rooftop for wine-grape cultivation and wine production.
With cooperation from the Miyagi Prefecture winery Fattoria AL FIORE, the seminar will receive wine-grape vines and test varieties and cultivation conditions suited to the urban environment of Hongo, Bunkyo Ward.
Since 2004, when the rooftop of Building No. 1 was renovated with abundant greenery, the Nomura Seminar has worked on a “Rooftop Garden Branding & Harvest Product Development Project,” developing the rooftop space as a brand and creating products from harvested crops.
Although there are examples of university rooftops being used to create products or make wine, cases of “winemaking on a university campus in central Tokyo” remain rare, making this project a new challenge.
Project Features
The project has four main features:
1. Grape cultivation on a central-Tokyo campus rooftop
2. Research and cultivation in collaboration with a full-scale winery
3. Branding the rooftop space as “IL NIDO DELLA FENICE”
4. Turning harvested crops into products and developing commercial applications
In the future, the initiative envisions a broader “Bunkyo Wine District Plan” connecting Bunkyo Ward with food, agriculture, and regional communities.
Through the spread of grape cultivation on urban rooftops and underused spaces, and by nurturing local food culture and community around these activities, the project aims to propose a new form of city that is more harmonious with the planet.
Reference
Overview
Project name: Rooftop Garden Branding & Harvest Product Development Project
Brand name: IL NIDO DELLA FENICE — Italian for “Nest of the Phoenix”
Organizer: Toyo Gakuen University, Faculty of Business Administration, Contemporary Consumer Research Seminar (Associate Professor Takuya Nomura)
Grape cultivation start: Mid-March 2026
Partner: Fattoria AL FIORE (winery in Miyagi Prefecture)
Location: Toyo Gakuen University campus rooftop, 1-26-3 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo