The newspaper office, Tozai Shinbun, plans to publish the Ultimate Menu to commemorate their 100th anniversary. It would not only describe foods but also pass on dietary cultures for many generations to come. Despite its importance, Shirou Yamaoka, a lazy employee, and Yuuko Kurita, a company newcomer, are selected as the editors.
Culinary journalists Shirou Yamaoka and Yuuko Kurita must prepare the menu that will represent the Touzai Newspaper on an upcoming competition against the Teito Newspaper. The theme: food that promotes longevity. For a better research, both journalists head to Okinawa, place with the highest life expectancy in Japan.
The Oishinbo gang takes time off from the normal culinary wars to get involved with a political dispute about American rice imports. The economic conflict between a pushy US Senator from California and a nationalistic Japanese politician is further complicated by concerns about the cumulative effect of pesticide use in both American and Japanese agriculture.
