Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki uses a grinder to cut off extraneous parts from a cast iron pot he was manually making at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsmen Suebsai Seksuk, left, a Thai native living in Japan, and Katsunori Suzuki pour molten iron into a mould while making a cast iron pot by hand at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Kuniko Oikawa, center, president of Oigen Foundry, chats with craftsmen Katsunori Suzuki, left, and Suebsai Seksuk as they start their work at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki uses a tool to make detailed designs as he makes a cast iron pot by hand at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki takes molten iron into a bucket before carrying it back to his work section to make a cast iron pot manually at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Oigen's handmade pot called "Kuwagata II," one of the "Mugu" series, is displayed at the company's store at the factory in Oshu, northeast of Japan, Friday, May 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki presses sand into a mould with his own weight at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Oigen's handmade pot called "Kuwagata II," one of the "Mugu" series, is displayed at the company's store at the factory in Oshu, northeast of Japan, Friday, May 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki uses a brush to bring up a contour of a cooking pot to make detailed designs as he makes a cast iron pot by hand at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. Sprinkling chalk dust inside a mold helps Suzuki know the outline of the pot before locating where to make detailed designs. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Workers prepare cast iron pots to put into a kiln to bake them with high temperature to make them rust resistant at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
A worker pulls out a tray of cast iron pots after they were baked in a kiln with high temperature to make them rust resistant at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki sifts sand with a sieve to put finer sand over a mold to make a cast iron pot before stuffing the sand into the mold by hand at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki sprinkles water over sand mixed with other materials to keep it moist, preparing for making a cast iron product at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)
Craftsman Katsunori Suzuki carries a bucket of molten iron back to his work section as he was making a cast iron pot by hand at the Oigen foundry in Oshu, northeastern Japan, Thursday, May 16, 2024. He needed to hurry to carry molten iron not to lose its high temperature before pouring into a mold. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)