I’m Mariko, a permaculturalist based in New Zealand, sharing my journey of playing, living, working, and learning through permaculture.
I’ve been to Japan for 2 week. Then I went to see Real Kiero at the compost shop （ The compost friend）in Tokyo.
This is my report.
Returning to Japan, and to My Roots
When my mother told me that my father’s health was not good, I rushed back to Japan.
When I finally saw him, he was in better condition than I had feared—but his life had clearly changed.
My father now uses a walker and can no longer go out to his veggie garden that is 10 mins walk from his house when he was one healthy walking.
For many years, food scraps from their home had naturally returned to the soil as fertiliser for his garden. That cycle was quietly disappearing.
So during a short stay in Japan, I have decided to Install a Kiero at my parents’ home.
As someone training to become a Kiero Official advisor, and learnt many knowledges, I thought myself that I have to make one for my parents.
Why Kiero, and Why Now
When I explained Kiero to my father, he immediately understood.
He has always known the power of soil, fermentation, and microorganisms.
The idea that food waste could “disappear” through microbial activity made perfect sense to him.
But there were real challenges.
- I didn’t have tools
- I didn’t have a car
- I only had about a week
- And building wooden boxes had always been my husband’s role in New Zealand
I could explain Kiero. I could sell it.
But could I actually make one myself, here in Japan, under these conditions?
Searching for Materials
I began by checking DIY store websites. Hmmm they were too many choices.
So many options. So many specifications.
As a beginner, I felt completely lost.
Mr. Matsumoto was saying that, the inventor of Kiero, recommends cedar because of its durability—but searching for cedar in Japanese DIY shop wasn’t easy.
Asking for Help, and Finding a Clue
Eventually, I did what permaculture has taught me to do: ask the community.
I reached out to fellow on Facebook group.
That’s when someone mentioned something unexpected:
“Apple boxes are being sold online.”
Apple box Kiero like this.
That instantly reminded me of Compost shop in Tokyo ( Compost Friends), a compost specialty shop in Japan known for their beautifully designed apple box Kiero.
If this was possible, maybe I didn’t need to build everything from scratch.
That is shorten the timeline.
I checked the delivery date.
It would arrive just in time.
Without overthinking it, I ordered one.
Even if it didn’t become a Kiero, it could still be a storage box or planter.
But somewhere inside, a small sense of possibility began to grow.
I can do it.
To be continued…
