The prefecture is also  12  famous for its sake (rice wine), and this owes to the entrepreneurial spirit that sought to diversify product lines and enhance their quality against the background of declining prices of rice in the Edo era that resulted from excess supply.
12 Furthermore, while Koshihikari is now a byword for delicious rice, efforts were needed to overcome many difficulties to get to that point.13  Another significant advantage is that the prefecture is close to the growing economies of northeast Asia. It has close historical relations with regions on the opposite shores, such as the Russian Far East, China, and the Korean Peninsula.