The largest melon pan festival in Japan is set to be held over two days for the 2017 edition. Melon Pan Festival 2017 in Tokyo will wet the appetite with some 40 (yes, there are 40) varieties of the much-loved snack set to appear at the event in Tokyo’s, Chiyoda district.

After first appearing sometime during the Taishō era, the melon-flavoured bread has gone on to establish itself a firm favorite of the Japanese confectionery scene.  It was only a matter of time then that a festival would be devoted to the best of its kind.  The event has grown from 300 visitors in 2014 to some 1,500 visitors at the event last year. The 2017 edition hopes to be bigger and better, and will be held over two days for the first time.

The theme for 2017 is aimed at addressing the socially troubling habit of people hiding themselves behind smartphone screens.  Festival organisers hope to draw connections between melon pan and smartphones as being everyday items, the absence of which would be hard to conceive.  However, rather than using such items to detrimental effect, the festival aims to promote a usage that can enrich our lives.

Some of the proceeds drawn from Melon Pan Festival 2017 Tokyo will be donated to charitable projects in the Democratic Republic of Congo.  As festival organizers point out, the African nation is already troubled by violent disputes that threaten local communities, much of which is directed towards women.  At the center of some of these disputes, the mining of coltan, a metal component of the smartphones we use every day.   

Among 40 varieties of melon pan from around Japan, organizers have teamed up with 'maple / melon' specialists Bonjour Bon who will be bringing along their Quatro Fromage Melon Pan.  Sales of this item will go towards NGO, HEAL AFRICA in support of their work in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Melon Pan Festival 2017 in Tokyo will also feature creations from the traditional and plain to unique innovations including curry melon pan and cabbage melon pan.

The festival will be held over the weekend of May 5 - 6 at 3331 Arts Chiyoda, Tokyo.

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