On February 27, 2023, Kobe City and UHEIM Co. Theo, a baumkuchen AI craftsman, was granted a special certificate of residence in Kobe City's Chuo Ward to promote regional development through the promotion of the attractiveness of sweets culture in a wide range of fields.
Click here for the press release on the business collaboration agreement.
https://theo-foodtechers.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/20230227-1.pdf
1Matters related to the promotion of local industry through the promotion of the attractiveness of Kobe's sweets
Promoting Kobe Sweets to Foreign Tourists
We regularly open a food truck at the Kobe Port Terminal to sell THEO's baumkuchen to cruise ship passengers. Our fig jam sandwich baum and caramelized baum, which are made with locally produced Kobe ingredients, have been well received by foreign tourists, and we are promoting the appeal of Kobe sweets to the rest of the world.
2Creation of new value for Kobe sweets through food tech, etc.
Working with Microsoft Corporation
THEO is installed in the Microsoft AI Co-Innovation Lab KOBE and is being developed in collaboration with Microsoft. We expect that the use of various contents in the cloud will enable the evolution of AI, data utilization, and visualization.
3Matters related to initiatives aimed at a sustainable society
Invention of baumkuchen using local Kobe ingredients
Figs, a specialty of Kobe City, are rich in dietary fiber and minerals, and are characterized by their melting softness and rich sweetness. However, the time between harvesting and ripening is short, and weather conditions can result in sales losses.
Therefore, figs that were actually lost for sale were processed into jam, applied to a layer of baumkuchen, and baked to upcycle the jam into baumkuchen, taking advantage of the rich sweetness of figs and the texture of the tiny seeds.
He also invented a rice-flour baumkuchen, replacing the wheat flour used in regular THEO baumkuchen with Kobe-grown rice flour.
Both have been sold at food truck stalls and have been well received by customers.
Kobe City HP Products made from Kobe agricultural and marine products
https://www.city.kobe.lg.jp/a67688/kanko/nogyogyo/shouhinshoukai.html
On November 15, 2025, we participated in “Kobe Gourmet Discovery,” an event organized by the City of Kobe with the theme of “Kobe’s Cuisine,” where we sold fig jam-filled Baumkuchen.
4Matters related to human resource development through sweets
Initiatives with Students in Kobe City
Kobe Municipal Wakakusa Elementary School
In collaboration with the City of Kobe, the Kobe City Board of Education, and Wakakusa Elementary School, we implemented the “Learning Through Craftsmanship Project,” which utilized a field trip to the Osaka-Kansai Expo 2025 to teach students about Juchheim’s manufacturing processes and its AI-driven food tech initiatives. Students were invited to “THEO’S CAFE by Juchheim,” a booth set up at the Expo site, where they sampled freshly baked Baumkuchen. They also studied the history of Kobe’s sweets and created promotional materials designed for potential sales.
Kobe Municipal Wakakusa Elementary School
Eighteen students from the Tanaka Seminar in the Faculty of Business Administration at Kobe Gakuin University collaborated with Juchheim to develop an original menu featuring “THEO” Baumkuchen. The students divided into three groups, handled everything from promotion to pricing, and sold the products at the university festival. After the sale, they calculated their profits and losses and determined their target achievement rates, with all groups exceeding 130 percent.
Kobe Gakuin University
Five students from the Department of Health, Nutrition and Sports at Kobe Women's University and UHEIM devised a new menu based on the concept of a "post-workout rewarding sweet" that can be enjoyed comfortably by tired bodies. In addition to selling the sweets at the school festival, they were also sold to tennis school patrons, where they were well received.
Kobe Women's University
Sixteen students from the Faculty of Medical Nutrition at Konan Women's University and UHEIM devised a new menu combining THEO's baumkuchen and local Kobe ingredients. The students themselves actively engaged in promotional activities and sold the "Nanjo Baum" at the "Yotsuba Festival 2023". Many customers lined up from the time the store opened, and sales exceeded the expected quantity.
Konan Women's University
5Other matters related to regional development in Kobe
Regional Development in Kobe City
We held a workshop where children learned about the history of Baumkuchen and the future of AI and pastry chefs.
(April 2024)
THEO's freshly baked baumkuchen were presented to the medical staff of Kobe City Central Municipal Hospital.
(April 2023)
Baumkuchen for the children of Kobe Jitsugyo Gakuin.
In December, a Christmas party was held to deepen exchanges by making unique baumkuchen with original decorations.
(December 2023)
