Author Archives: The Japan Agricultural News

Japan’s first wagyu beef auction for foreign buyers held in Hyogo Prefecture

HYOGO, March 26 — An auction for overseas buyers seeking premium wagyu beef was held on March 25 at Wagyu Master Meat Center, a meat processing facility in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture. More than 100 buyers from 12 countries and regions joined the bidding for carcasses of wagyu beef brands including Kobe beef. The highest successful bid price was 36,570 yen per kilogram excluding tax. It was the first time an auction dedicated to foreign buyers was held in Japan. The Japanese Wagyu World Auction was organized by an organization comprising the meat center, Kobe Beef Marketing & Distribution Promotion Association and S Foods Inc., a meat wholesaler based in Nishinomiya, … Continue reading

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Zen-Noh opens egg product factory in Hong Kong to ensure high-quality food delivery

Hong Kong, Mar. 19 – The National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (Zen-Noh) has opened a new hub in Hong Kong to produce and sell Japanese chicken egg products. The new factory in the expanding market for Japanese food will produce dashi-maki tamago (rolled omelet made with eggs and dashi broth), hanjuku tamago (half-boiled eggs), and onsen tamago (soft-boiled eggs), for example, for local sushi chains, large-scale supermarkets, and restaurants. By producing and selling products using high-quality eggs and advanced processing technology from Japan, Zen-Noh aims to improve the income of Japanese egg producers. In May 2022, Zen-Noh International Hong Kong Limited and JA Z-Tamago Co., Ltd. established Zen-Noh International … Continue reading

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Japan’s agriculture minister visits Miyazaki which will host the G7 farm ministers’ meeting

MIYAZAKI, March 19 — Tetsuro Nomura, the minister of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, visited on March 18 the city of Miyazaki which will host the Group of Seven agricultural ministers’ meeting in April and exchanged opinions with Miyazaki Gov. Shunji Kono and others. Nomura reiterated that the meeting will focus on food security and said Japan plans to explain efforts related to its Green Food System Strategy aimed at reducing the environmental impact of agriculture, including extensive cooperation between crop farming and livestock production. The farm ministers’ meeting, to be chaired by Nomura, is scheduled to be held on April 22 and 23 at Seagaia Convention Center in the city. … Continue reading

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Private guidelines established for safe use of black soldier fly larvae as animal feed

TOKYO, Mar. 8 – A private organization in Japan has established guidelines for black soldier fly production to ensure the safe use of larvae as feed materials and food. The new private guidelines are now in place to gain consumers’ trust and confidence, following the ones created last year for crickets. While insects are gathering attention as alternative protein sources for farm animals and humans, there are no public rules for raising the insect. Insect Business Research and Development Platform (iBPF), a group of research institutes including Osaka International University and private companies, developed the guidelines. The black soldier fly is a promising future material for feed due to its … Continue reading

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Exports of Fukushima farm produce strengthen 12 years after the Great East Japan Earthquake

FUKUSHIMA, March 11 — Exports of agricultural items grown and processed in Fukushima Prefecture have been showing brisk growth, as the prefecture recovers from the 2011 Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant accident. Shipments of alcohol products, mainly Japanese sake, are rising and Fukushima-grown peaches occupy the top share among Japanese peaches sold in Southeast Asian markets. Fukushima also signed a deal with a supermarket in the United States for large-scale shipments of rice. With the trend of the weak yen and more countries and regions relaxing import restrictions on food products from Fukushima imposed after the nuclear disaster, the exports are expected to have grown at a higher pace … Continue reading

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