Author Archives: The Japan Agricultural News

Robot tractor moving fast with eye to the future; first demonstration in Toyama successful

TOYAMA, Oct. 23-An empty tractor completed the work at one farmland and moved to another. No one was sitting in the driver seat, but on the way when it saw a mannequin doll crossing, it stopped automatically and give way to the doll. Such a futuristic experiment was shown at the farmland of an agricultural corporation in the capital of Toyama Prefecture on October 22, 2020. The next-generation tractor was developed by a consortium led by the National Agricultural Research Organization and demonstrated in the prefecture in central Japan. Conventional robot tractors can work autonomously without a driver in farmland, but they still need drivers to drive on the road. … Continue reading

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“Add Noh Cards to your collection!” Young Japanese farmers get over 70 together to create new buzz with new trading cards

AICHI, Oct. 16 – New series of collectible cards featuring farmers are drawing consumers’ attention in Japan. The card called “Noh Card (Farmers Card)” proposed by three young farmers is a business card-sized card with a picture of farmers and information on their proud products. Consumers can have fun collecting them like other trading cards, and that encourages them to buy more agricultural products from more than 70 farmers who currently participate in the project. One of the proposers, Hiroyasu Ogawa is a 30-year-old grape tomato grower in Tahara City, Aichi Prefecture. He hopes that the initiative can bring consumers and farmers closer together and build a positive image of … Continue reading

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Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga eager to boost farm exports and revitalize regional economy

TOKYO, Oct. 27 – Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga made his first policy speech at the Diet on Oct. 26, expressing eagerness to revitalize rural areas and stimulate the Japanese economy by boosting tourism and agricultural reform. In order to increase income and inflow of people in regional areas, he said he will continue promoting exports of agricultural products and reforming the farm sector, the policies which he had been focusing on as chief cabinet secretary. But he failed to offer new policies regarding agriculture. In his speech given at the extraordinary Diet session which was convened on the day, Suga reiterated the fact that he was born in a farm … Continue reading

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Japan and Britain sign free trade agreement with aim to make it enter into force in January

TOKYO, Oct. 24 – Japan and Britain signed an economic partnership agreement on Oct. 23, with an aim to implement it on Jan. 1 next year following approval of the two nations’ parliaments. The bilateral agreement largely replicates the existing economic partnership agreement between Japan and the European Union regarding tariff cuts and reductions for farm produce, but no new import quotas will be set for Britain. British International Trade Secretary Liz Truss, who was visiting Tokyo, attended a signing ceremony along with Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi. “We want to make this agreement a foundation to further strengthen and develop the Japan-Britain relationship,” Motegi said at a joint news conference … Continue reading

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Japan’s wood self-sufficiency rate up for nine consecutive years

TOKYO, Oct. 19 – Japan’s wood self-sufficiency rate increased for nine years in a row. According to the data released by the Forestry Agency of Japan, the country’s wood self-sufficiency rate rose 1.2 percentage points from the previous year to 37.8% in 2019. The rate improved 11.5 points in the past nine years. The agency said the improvement is attributable to the stable supply of domestic timber from the forests created after the war and its prices, which are less fluctuant than imported wood. Wood self-sufficiency rate is a ratio of domestic timber production to the total timber demand in the country. It was 26.3% in 2010. The ratio was … Continue reading

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