site.btaDocumentary Tells Story of How Bulgarian Yoghurt Made It to Japan

The Bulgarian Bacteria documentary film tells the story of how Bulgarian yoghurt, with its deep roots in the history of the Balkans, has fuelled "soft" diplomacy and cultural cooperation with Japan. Away from politics, Bulgaria's Lactobacillus d. bulgaricus proves that positive things can happen. Even Japan, whose trust is not easy to win, could not resist it. These are the words of Nikolay Vasilev, the director of the film, which is scheduled to premiere on Jaunary 22 on Bulgarian National TV. 

The film is focused on the interesting story behind the encounter of Japanese culture with Lactobacillus d. bulgaricus. This is a true story and it is connected to the legendary Japanese Emperor Hirohito, who visited the Bulgarian pavilion at the Japan World Exposition in Osaka back in 1970, although this was not part of his official programme. 

The Japanese Emperor tried yoghurt and was told about the Bulgarian physician Dr Stamen Grigorov, who in 1905 discovered a special bacterium in samples of Bulgarian yoghurt and called it Lactobacillus bulgaricus. Emperor Hirohito was also told about the research of famous Russian zoologist and Nobel laureate Ilya Mechnikov, who linked the longevity of Bulgarian centenarians to the consumption of yoghurt. The Emperor was so intrigued by all this, that he spent 45 minutes with the Bulgarians instead of the intended 15. He even wanted the same programme to be repeated the next day for the prince and princess," the documentary film's director said. 

"It's a sensation for the Japanese media and they're picking it up. This is where the Japanese Meiji Co., which has been in the Japanese market for more than 100 years producing dairy products and sweets, comes into the story about our superbacteria. Until this point, natural yoghurt was completely unknown to Japanese culture, only sweet yoghurts were known," Vasilev said

The director of the company sent a team of specialists to try the Bulgarian miracle. He was determined to prepare a new brand, Meiji Bulgaria Yogurt, and teach the Japanese to appreciate the taste of health. But before becoming the face of the company, the brand had to endure and overcome dramatic trials and tribulations. Meiji has shown hoow, when one is convinced in the quality of their product, they can turn consumer attitudes around with business diplomacy and advertising, Nikolay Vasilev explained. 

The Bulgarian Bacteria film features Prof. Maria Yotova, cultural anthropologist and Professor at Ritsumeikan University. Today she is known as an expert on dairy production technologies in Japan. The film also features Bulgarian-Japanese former sumo wrestler Kaloyan Makhlyanov (Kotooshu Katsunori), who advertised for years Meiji Bulgaria Yogurt, Assoc. Prof. Svetlana Minkova - daughter of Todor Minkov (the director of Dairy Industry, under whom the contract with the Japanese was signed nearly half a century ago), and Irena Ivanova - a descendant of Dr. Stamen Grigorov.