FUKUOKA, April 3 – A research team in Fukuoka Prefecture has developed a dual temperature zone container for shipment of fruit and vegetables, which will be tested to export Japanese farm produce to Hong Kong starting later this year. The container can be divided into two compartments of equal size with temperature gap of up to 20 degrees centigrade, enabling shipment of chilled cargo and frozen cargo together in one container, reducing the risk of damaging temperature-sensitive products. The container also comes with a plasma generator to keep the products fresh. Developers hope the containers will pave the way for mixed-load, small-lot exports of high-quality Japanese produce. A research team … Continue reading →

TOKYO, April 1 — Japan’s Kindai University is to offer an agribusiness program on intellectual property rights related to food products at its agriculture faculty from September. The program is a first attempt by the agriculture ministry to collaborate with a university on this subject. The ministry hopes investing in education on IPRs may help prepare a new generation to lead Japan’s agriculture industry. The move comes at a time when theft of Japanese agriculture breeds is hurting the nation’s exports. In 2015, Japan set up its GI system to guarantee the protected status of food products, helping farmers to differentiate their products from competing products in the market. Moreover, … Continue reading →