Category Archives: Cooperatives

【News】 Farmers rally against expansion of rice imports (Sept. 30, 2015)

Some 250 farmers from across the nation gathered in Tokyo on Tuesday, Sept. 29, to rally against the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks, calling on the government to keep the Diet resolutions which pledge to protect key farm items. Headed by two tractors, the farmers paraded about 2 km from Hibiya Park to the Diet, carrying banners and mikoshi portable shrine made of straw sacks filled with rice. They called out: “Protect rice!” “Withdraw from TPP!” The demonstration was hosted by four farmers’ organizations including Japan Family Farmers Movement. After the rally, they met with a farm ministry official and urged the government not to expand rice imports, as reported to … Continue reading

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【Opinion】 Primary farm co-ops’ directors should represent regional interests (Sept. 29, 2015)

  Yoichi Tashiro, Professor of agricultural economics at Otsuma Women’s University The revised Agricultural Co-operative Society Law, which strongly reflects the intentions of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s administration, was recently approved in the Diet. There are many aspects of the law that don’t make sense, and a rule on assigning primary farm co-ops (JAs)’ directors is one of them. The new law states that more than half of primary JAs’ directors should be certified farmers or professionals of farm product sales and corporate management, and that boards of directors should not be largely imbalanced in terms of age and gender. However, JAs are not public institutions nor government-funded organizations. They … Continue reading

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【News】 Japan agricultural co-ops group delegation to make last-minute call on TPP talks (Sept. 26, 2015)

  The Japan agricultural co-operatives (JA) group plans to send a delegation to Atlanta, where member nations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade initiative are scheduled to hold a ministerial meeting starting Wednesday, Sept. 30. The delegation, to be headed by Choe Okuno, president of the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu), will call on the Japanese government to protect key farm items in line with the Diet resolutions. The group made the decision at a committee meeting on Friday, Sept. 25, along with its policy to also lobby lawmakers domestically in each prefecture. JA-Zenchu officials pointed out that the prospects of the TPP negotiations remain unclear, as there have been … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 After security laws comes TPP (Sept. 26, 2015)

  Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held a press conference on Friday, Sept. 25, ahead of the closing of the Diet session two days after, and reaffirmed the significance of the security legislation which was passed in the Diet after heated arguments. Various challenges for the future were left in the Diet session, where many important bills were passed, including the one to revise the Agricultural Co-operative Society Law. Abe is scheduled to visit the United States starting Saturday, Sept. 26. Farmers are worried that his next target after the security laws would be to forcibly conclude the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks. We strongly call on the government to follow the … Continue reading

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【News】 Farmer of Joso struggles to recover from floods (Sept. 17, 2015)

Daishi Harajiri A farmer of Joso, Ibaraki Prefecture, severely hit by the heavy rain and floods which occurred a week ago, is at a loss of how to recover his business. His rice paddies, farming equipment and harvested rice had all been submerged in muddy water, making it impossible to deliver the produce to customers. Isamu Wada, 64, grows rice on a 60-hectare land in the city’s Ono district, out of which 55 is rented. 35 hectares were yet to be harvested when the banks of the Kinugawa River collapsed on Thursday, Sept. 10. Muddy streams flew into the district located east of the river, damaging all the rice paddies. … Continue reading

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