Work to make round rice cakes for New Year is in full swing at Yamada Mochi Honten rice cake shop in Nagoya's Mizuho Ward on Dec. 27, 2024. In the work area, where steam was rising from rice steamers, freshly pounded rice cakes were being brought in, and craftspeople were quickly rolling them out and shaping them. Using approximately 6 metric tons of sticky rice produced in northern Japan's Tohoku region, known for its rich taste, around 40 workers are preparing and selling "kagami mochi" round rice cakes and other varieties over the five-day period up to Dec. 31, the last day until noon. "I hope people will start off a good year by savoring good mochi rice cakes on New Year's Day," President Katsuya Yamada commented.

(Japanese original by Kazuki Yamazaki, Nagoya Photo and Video News Department)