Category Archives: Others

【Series】 The Chernobyl disaster, 27 years of building trust : Part 1 – Government-led efforts to secure food safety (Aug. 6, 2013)

  Tomokatsu Sowa In July, a delegation of farmers and citizens recruited by Fukushima city visited Belarus and Ukraine that were affected by the Chernobyl nuclear accident which occurred in Ukraine in 1986. A Japan Agricultural News reporter who accompanied the delegation writes about the people who are still struggling with radioactive substances to recover food safety 27 years after the accident. In the Komarovski market in Minsk, the capital city of Belarus located some 340 kilometers northwest of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, roughly 2,000 vegetable and fruit stalls stand next to each other in a 30,000-square-meter land. The state-operated market, centered upon a building with an undulating roof, is … Continue reading

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【News】 Spontaneous growth of genetically modified plants are found spreading in South Korea, a research institute finds (Aug. 6, 2013)

  Zhezhu Jin The growth areas of genetically modified plants are spreading throughout South Korea in recent years, apparently due to imported GM products that have accidentally been scattered or fallen off to the ground during transportation, according to a report by South Korea’s National Institute of Environmental Research. Some of the plants crossbred with other varieties in some areas, the report said, prompting citizens’ groups to call on the government to strengthen monitoring and control of GM crops. The South Korean government also set on revising related regulations. The institute has been monitoring living modified organisms (LMOs) released into the environment since 2009, and has discovered spontaneous growth of … Continue reading

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【News】 Agave plant in Shizuoka Prefecture flowers for the first time in two decades (Aug. 5, 2013)

  Agave, a plant which is also known by the name “century plant” for its nature of flowering only once in decades, has blossomed in Nishi, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, for the first time in 20 years. The agave, planted by Denjiro Okada, 65, in his field some 40 years ago, first flowered in around 1991. Its stem started to grow up again in mid-April this year to reach nearly 10 meters high by late June, and yellow flowers blossomed in mid-July. Okada said he did not expect to live to see the plant flower again, and asked people to feel free to come and enjoy the flowers. The plant is … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Detroit bankruptcy – the fate of an economy where the wealthiest takes away the wealth and the future of the nation (Aug. 2, 2013)

  The city of Detroit, which has thrived as the center of America’s auto industry, filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection in federal court in July. It is said to be the largest municipal bankruptcy filing in the United States history by debt, estimated to amount to roughly 2 trillion yen. The decline of the city triggered by loss of tax revenue indicates the danger of a regional economy depending on a handful of firms. America’s free market economy, in which the strong victimizes the weak and widens the gap between rich and poor, is beginning to collapse beneath its feet. Japan, which is pushing aggressively for deregulation and competitive … Continue reading

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【News】 The Japan Agricultural News and the agricultural ministry announce winners of this year’s poster design contest advocating safety of farmworkers (July 23, 2013)

  Kie Nakauchi, a 31-year-old company employee of Nabari, Mie Prefecture, won the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Prize in the poster design contest for 2013, jointly held by The Japan Agricultural News and the agricultural ministry to promote safe working conditions for agricultural workers.The poster designed by Nakauchi depicts a silhouette of a farmer coming home in the twilight to be welcomed by his daughter, and comes with a phrase “Always keep your mind on working safely. Glad to have you home again safe and sound.” Nakauchi said she created the design by imagining a farmer trying to work safely for his family waiting for him at home … Continue reading

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