Thomas Antisell, a chemist from overseas who was hired by the new Hokkaido administration, surveyed the geology of the region in 1871 and discovered raw hops in what is today Iwanai-cho. The following year, Antisell forecasted that the beer industry would go on to succeed in Japan, and proposed to the administration that they begin hops cultivation. Antisell’s prediction was that the local climate would allow for not only production of hops for domestic use, but even a fertile enough crop for export.