VEGETABLES
Watermelon production by prefecture
Kumamoto Prefecture grows or catches the most watermelon in Japan: 42,100 t, 15.1% of the national total. Next come Chiba Prefecture and Yamagata Prefecture. This survey covers the main producing prefectures only; prefectures not listed were not surveyed.
| Rank | Prefecture | Output (t) | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Kumamoto Prefecture | 42,100 | 15.1% |
| #2 | Chiba Prefecture | 37,100 | 13.3% |
| #3 | Yamagata Prefecture | 29,600 | 10.6% |
| #4 | Tottori Prefecture | 18,900 | 6.8% |
| #5 | Hokkaido | 18,500 | 6.6% |
| #6 | Niigata Prefecture | 16,200 | 5.8% |
| #7 | Nagano Prefecture | 16,000 | 5.7% |
| #8 | Ibaraki Prefecture | 15,800 | 5.7% |
| #9 | Aichi Prefecture | 15,100 | 5.4% |
| #10 | Ishikawa Prefecture | 12,700 | 4.6% |
| #11 | Kanagawa Prefecture | 9,510 | 3.4% |
| #12 | Akita Prefecture | 8,600 | 3.1% |
| #13 | Nagasaki Prefecture | 7,640 | 2.7% |
| #14 | Aomori Prefecture | 4,760 | 1.7% |
| #15 | Shizuoka Prefecture | 4,180 | 1.5% |
| #16 | Oita Prefecture | 4,130 | 1.5% |
| #17 | Hyogo Prefecture | 3,220 | 1.2% |
| #18 | Fukui Prefecture | 3,010 | 1.1% |
| #19 | Ehime Prefecture | 2,740 | 1.0% |
| #20 | Fukuoka Prefecture | 2,370 | 0.8% |
| #21 | Kagoshima Prefecture | 2,080 | 0.7% |
| #22 | Wakayama Prefecture | 1,810 | 0.6% |
| #23 | Nara Prefecture | 1,720 | 0.6% |
| #24 | Yamaguchi Prefecture | 1,580 | 0.6% |
| #25 | Okayama Prefecture | 710 | 0.3% |
| — | Japan total | 279,100 | 100% |
Source: MAFF, Crop Statistics Survey / Marine Fishery Production Statistics (e-Stat, 2024 final). Aquaculture counts harvested output.
EAT
Who eats the most?
The city that buys the most is Niigata (Niigata Prefecture), at 1.8× the national average per household. The prefecture that grows it most and the one that buys it most are different.
Q&A
Common questions
Which prefecture produces the most watermelon in Japan?
Kumamoto Prefecture, with 42,100 t (15.1% of the national total) in 2024, according to Japan's Ministry of Agriculture.
Where in Japan do people buy the most watermelon?
Niigata (Niigata Prefecture) households buy 1.8× the national average (Statistics Bureau of Japan, 2023–2025 average).