Author Archives: The Japan Agricultural News

【News】 Japan to join France-led initiative to capture carbon in agricultural soils (Nov. 29, 2015)

  Senior special writer, Masaru Yamada The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries plans to join a global initiative proposed by the French government to capture a large amount of carbon in agricultural soils. The idea under the so-called “4 per 1000” initiative is to increase the carbon stock of agricultural and forest soils by 0.4 percent every year to reduce emission of greenhouse gases including carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Measures to prevent carbon from flowing out of soils include plowing in crop residues and manures and planting cover crops to avoid soil erosion. Such measures can also help recover fertility of agricultural soils degraded by excessive, repeated cultivation. … Continue reading

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【Series】 Japanese food worth sharing with world – O-han yellow rice and topping from Usuki-shi, Oita Prefecture (Nov. 27, 2015)

Celebratory dish that dates back to Edo period Yellow steamed rice colored with dried gardenia fruits is served with colorful flavorful topping in a separate bowl. The rice is called “o-han (yellow rice)” and the topping “o-han kayaku (additional goodies to go with o-han). This is a traditional food in Usuki-shi, Oita Prefecture. Unlike regular steamed rice, o-han is cooked with salt and its cheerful yellow color stimulates our appetite. O-han kayaku cooked with several root vegetables like carrot and Japanese radish as well as minced fish meat and tofu is rich and delicious. It’s no wonder that it still is a popular traditional local food prepared to welcome guests. … Continue reading

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【News】 Japanese agricultural co-op officials visit quake-hit Nepal (Nov. 26, 2015)

A delegation of the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu), headed by JA-Zenchu Vice President Toshiyuki Morinaga, visited on Tuesday, Nov. 24, a village in Nepal severely hit by a massive earthquake in spring. They met farmers and local farm co-op staff working to restore the area. They also visited the Nepal Agricultural Co-operative Central Federation Ltd. (NACCFL), the national federation of farm co-ops, to offer donations of JPY15 million. The delegation visited an agricultural co-operative for small-scale farmers based in Jeevanpur in Dhading district, 25 km west of the capital city of Kathmandu. Most of the village’s population of about 10,000 are engaged in farming, according to JA-Zenchu. The … Continue reading

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【News】 Do up wooden tie and run into work smiling (Nov. 22, 2015)

Kotaro Yamada In Takayama-shi, Gifu Prefecture, wood ties created by a craftsman at a local carpentry shop, TS Sangyo, are drawing attention. The wearable wooden product is named “Nokutie.” It’s planned to go on sale by the end of November 2015 after some final tuning. Nokutie has five parts which are held together by a cord that runs through the parts. The cord is then tied to an elastic cord that goes around the shirt collar. It comes in 10 different locally-grown timbers including cherry wood, maple, chestnut and oak. The parts for one Nokutie are cut out of one piece of wood. This way, wood grain patterns are used … Continue reading

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【News】 Hokkaido firm develops map showing crop yields by different colors (Nov. 21, 2015)

Isopp Agri System, an agricultural production corporation in Kitami, Hokkaido, has developed a map showing soybean and wheat crop yields by different colors. Through making field distribution visible, the firm hopes to utilize the data to work out manuring strategies for next year. The firm generated yield maps using a Global Positioning System-equipped large-size combine harvester which it purchased from German firm Claas. It is the first Japanese company to import a combine to create yield maps, according to the firm. The combine, while it harvests crops, identifies location information using high-precision Real Time Kinematic (RTK) GPS and divides a field into five colors for every 10 square meters according … Continue reading

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