Author Archives: The Japan Agricultural News

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare organized a direct selling of farm products and other goods produced by disabled people at their work facilities in a “Marche of Agriculture-Welfare Collaboration” opened at the plaza of JR Yurakucho Station in Tokyo on May 29-30. The significance of collaboration between agriculture and welfare was demonstrated through the direct selling of those products at the Marche. 18 organizations and corporations respectively set up direct sales stands at the plaza to sell fresh farm products and processed foods. Yuki Saito, working for an agricultural corporation at Tokorozawa-shi, Saitama prefecture, joined the selling at the Marche with her … Continue reading →

Standing-style restaurants that serve you high-quality wagyu (Japanese beef) are increasing in number in Japan. People stay shorter when eating whilst standing so they can serve more customers per day and that’s how they lower the operational cost and serve you high-quality wagyu at very reasonable price. One pioneering standing yakiniku restaurant is already popular among customers of all ages. However, one of the reasons for their success is the rise in the number of ohitori-sama, which literally means person doing things alone in Japanese. According to one private survey, yakiniku restaurants are high on the list of the restaurants that are found to be difficult for those who choose … Continue reading →

May 29 marks one year since a volcano called Shindake erupted at Japan’s southern island of Kuchinoerabu-jima, part of Kagoshima prefecture on the island of Kyushu. Last December, 108 residents of the island, 80 percent of the total residents before the eruption, who had been evacuated mostly to the neighboring island of Yaku-shima, returned to their home island since the evacuation instruction was lifted except for 8 families living near the crater. Some of the people, who came back to the Kuchinoerabu-jima island, began to grow sweet potatoes, raw materials for producing a distilled spirit called “Shochu,” so as to revitalize the economy in the disaster-hit island. Meanwhile, they are … Continue reading →

“Yubari Melons” produced in Yubari-shi, Hokkaido, well-known high-grade brand melons, were put up for a season-opening auction at the Sapporo City Central Wholesale Market on May 26. A package of two pieces of A-Grad Yubari Melon marked a record-high price of 3 million yen, breaking the previous record of 2.5 million yen. Yubari Melon was just registered under the Geographical Indication (GI) Protection System last year. The GI Protection System, administrated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), aims to guarantee high qualities of products which have unique values of specific regions. People of the Yubari-shi Agricultural Cooperative (JA) appreciated that MAFF’s GI System had given a push … Continue reading →