As for the industries most famous in this area, there is agriculture, forestry , fisheries and tourism.

In the tourist industry, Kinosaki hot springs as well as Kannabe ski resort and the castle town of Izushi are famous. More than 5 million people visit every year .

Steers which are bred in the north part of Hyogo, are called Tajima Beef.
Tajima Beef is the origin of Kobe Beef, Matsuzaka Beef and Omi Beef which are famous for high-class beef. These steers are auctioned off when they are young, and then they are bred in city or town.
The appeal of Tajima Beef is its beautiful marbled appearance. This makes the beef soft and pleasant on the tongue with a mellow taste.

The male Snow crab which is brought in Tajima, is called Matsuba Crab.
Big crabs have a 15cm-wide shell and it has lots of sweet flesh in its legs.
You can enjoy it in several ways. For example, grilled, boiled or raw.
The fishing season is from the early part of November to March 20th .
During this season, many people visit just to enjoy “Matsuba Kani”.

Izushi Sara Soba has a long history. In 1706, Mr. Sengoku who was the domain lord, took the buckwheat noodle artisan from Ueda, Shinshu.
This was the beginning of “Izushi Soba” There are about 50 soba restaurants in Izushi. They keep the tradition “fresh-ground, fresh-made, fresh-boiled”. The special feature is the presentation; served on the small Izushi ware. You can put green onions, eggs and grated mountain potato on it as seasonings.
You will be a soba expert if you eat more than 15 dishes.

The wicker trunk is made of dried willow that is woven with hemp yarn.
In the Edo period, the wicker trunk was used regularly by express messengers and medicine sellers because it is strong, light and suitable for the Japanese climate which has high humidity as well as dry weather. In the 1900s, they were exported and expanded. This was the beginning of being known as “The Bag Producing Town, Toyooka”. Now Kiryu handiworks as well as the wicker trunk are designated to the traditional handicraft of Japan .

The Izushi Ware which is famous for white porcelain, has about a 200-year-history. “Izushi Yaki” is made from “Kakitani Touseki” which is pure white, raw material. Delicate engraving which is made by a professional potter, is designated to this traditional handicraft of Japan .

Weaving dyed straw and putting birds and flowers design on a paulownia wooden box. These are techniques to make straw works.
This can be made only by hand, so each piece of work has an individual design.
In the Edo period, Siebold who was a German doctor, took straw works back to Germany as Siebold's collection. This is designated to the traditional handicraft of Hyogo prefecture.

Silk goods were started in Nakayama, Tanto-cho, Toyooka city about 200 years ago. In 1923, habutae which is a smooth, glossy silk cloth with a fine weave, was presented to Her Majesty the Empress. In 1936, the silk crepe was made as the gift to the Emperor of Japan from the Hyogo Prefectural governor. In recent years, they are trying to produce “silk yukata (an informal cotton kimono )” using silk and cotton.

In the beginning they were making packing rope from straw, but after vinyl string appeared, production decreased. In 1965, they started making tatami mats using straw . In recent years, they are more aggressively making thin tatami mats .