Hello! Project Trainee Airi Ohno (Anyako) announced on the group’s official X (formerly Twitter) account that she has earned certifications as an “Organic Vegetable Advisor” and a “Vegetable Cultivation Specialist.” Hello! Project already has a member who carries the title of “Vegetable Sommelier,” and Ohno’s announcement is being seen as an extension of that trend. Reactions on 5ch were split: some read the certifications as a positive sign — a stepping stone toward joining a senior group like Angerme — while others questioned the practical value of these private certifications and whether they should take priority over idol activities.
Hello! Project Trainee Manager
@kenshusei_uf
Here she is — #HelloProjectTrainee #Anyako, also known as #AiriOhno! 😸🩵
Since she'd overlap with Murata, that kills her shot at Tsubaki Factory
9AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:28
She's putting her effort in the wrong direction
Same with the vegetable sommelier thing — that's just hobby-level stuff
Is Ohno planning to marry into a farming family or something?
10AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:30
She probably just wanted to apprentice under Takase
11AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:31
Ohno: "Angerme, Beyooo — I'm ready for either of you!"
13AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:33
I think this is a wonderful effort
We'd love to welcome her into our Angerme
14AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:34
Being talkative and having a bit of a character gimmick might be nice for an idol, but
isn't that supposed to be extra on top of visuals, singing, or dancing — not instead of them?
15AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:35
Does Murata have a vegetable-related certification too?
17AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:36
I'm going for the yakuman (mahjong's top-scoring hand) on bonus points alone
19AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:37
I want her to cook up the old man's bitter gourd
21AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:38
You shouldn't be working on "tricks" before you've even been promoted
Right now's the time to polish your performance and visuals
I'm taking this as a declaration that she wants to join Angerme
27AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:42
Her passion won me over… Anyako, bring Kotomi and come join Angerme together
30AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:43
Murata said she liked tomatoes before Doi did, but
now Doi's completely taken over the "tomato lover" persona — things are getting muddled
31AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:43
Would you press the button to add Airi Ohno, Mitsuri Yoshida, and Aiki Sugata to Angerme?
32AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:44
Goes for everyone, honestly, but if you're gonna flaunt it, at least make it a state-recognized qualification
33AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:44
You don't need to keep grinding as a trainee anymore, so go ahead and pursue that path instead
34AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:46
Ichika Arisawa holds the hardest-to-get qualification in all of Hello! Project (Senior Assistant Instructor at the Urasenke tea ceremony school) and she doesn't even make a big deal of it
Forget certifications, go viral on TikTok instead
35AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:48
There aren't enough "vegetable character" idols anyway — there's an opening
36AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:49
Anyako takes one more step toward becoming a full Hello! Project member
37AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:50
Nobody really needs a "vegetable character" though
At best it's useful for satoyama/satoumi (rural nature conservation) type appeals
38AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:51
Guess she figured charm alone wasn't going to cut it
41AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:57
42AnonymousSep 25, 2026 16:58
If you've got time for that, go take dance lessons
46AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:01
This girl would probably be happier living as a fan (wota) than trying to be an idol
Or become one of those people who reps the Hello! Project name from a comedian or cultural-commentator slot
48AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:02
If things go well, she might even land a spot on "Hakase-chan" (a TV show featuring kid/teen expert prodigies)
49AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:04
For this girl's own sake, farming's the better world for her, not idols
Everyone's got their own aptitude
50AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:05
Anyako's gonna teach you how to make vegetable juice: "It gets even better (umai)" — a pun on umai, meaning both "skilled" and "tasty"
51AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:08
A certification elementary schoolers can get… how's that supposed to look?
52AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:10
Once she's a full member, she'll land a spot on Yantan (the Young Town radio show) no problem
53AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:13
It's just a private certification
The kind anyone can get by paying a decent amount and studying for like six months through a correspondence course
55AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:21
What's the point of a certification even elementary schoolers can get?
56AnonymousSep 25, 2026 17:24
This will be an important stepping stone toward joining Angerme
Background and Discussion Points
The “Vegetable Sommelier”-type certifications Ohno earned are private certifications that can be studied for through correspondence courses, not state-recognized qualifications. Within Hello! Project, there’s precedent for members touting personal certifications as a special skill — Yui Murata of Tsubaki Factory, for instance, goes by the title “Vegetable Sommelier” — and Ohno’s announcement was seen as following that same pattern. On the thread, opinions split between a favorable reading (“maybe this is a stepping stone toward a future promotion or move to a senior group”) and a skeptical one (“do these private certifications actually mean anything in practice?” / “shouldn’t she be focused on performance first?”). Beyond her own social media post, little else is known about the certifications themselves, and the reasoning behind earning them — or what effect they’ll have on her future activities — remains unclear for now.
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