Photo= (from right) Shimbayashi, Otani, Takeda and Funakoshi, who have been selected as "Uji Tea Ladies" for fiscal 2015.

On April 19, four ladies were selected as the 2015 "Uji Tea Ladies" or ladies who promote Uji tea, and the award ceremony was held at the tea industry center in Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture. The Grand Prix was awarded to Megumi Shimbayashi, a 21-year-old senior at Ritsumeikan University.

Kyoto Tea Cooperative recruits tea ladies every year. This is the sixth year and there were 49 applicants from all over Japan. They were selected via submitted documents and interviews.

The other tea ladies are Ayaka Takeda, a 19-year-old sophomore at Ritsumeikan University, Ayano Otani, a 20-year-old sophomore at Doshisha Women’s College of Liberal Arts, and Yuka Funakoshi, a junior at Kyoto Women's University. They will cooperate in the promotion of Uji tea for a year.

Shimbayashi expressed her expectations, saying, "I have been familiar with tea since my childhood as I lived near tea plantations. I would like to promote the Uji tea brand." The four ladies offered comments such as, "I would like to popularize Uji tea in Kagawa Prefecture, my birthplace." and "I want young people to know about Uji tea."