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Nagano, in the Suwa region is the only place of production in the world of bar agar. Suwa region has little rain during winter and is very cold at night. This climate is the best environment to create bar agar. Therefore, bar type can be produced during winter only. Also, water and air in this region is very clean which is critical to creating kanten. Bar type generally contains 30% of gracilaria and 70% of agar.
The primary location of string agar production is Kyoto, Nagano and Gifu prefecture, Tounou region. It is a 100% natural agar-agar product and mainly used for deserts, salads and noodles. Natural string type is mainly produced in western Japan. The reason is that many traditional snack stores in the western region have been using string type for their deserts for many years.
Powder agar is currently most produced product in Japan. The good thing about powder type is that it is possible to produce a stable quality of agar anytime during the year. Another merit is that it is possible to control the characteristics of the agar such as coagulation, stickiness, elasticity, water retention, and melting temperature at the factory depending on customer needs.
