Category Archives: Cooperatives

【News】 International Co-operative Alliance president criticizes Japan’s agricultural reform proposal (May 28, 2014)

  International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) President Pauline Green has expressed strong concern over a government panel’s proposal for agricultural reform, which includes breaking up of Japan’s agricultural cooperative system. The Council for Regulatory Reform proposed on Wednesday, May 14, that the supervisory function of the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu) should be abolished to give primary farm co-ops freer hand to run their businesses. It also said JA’s mutual aid and credit businesses should be transferred to other agricultural financial institutions. In a letter sent to JA-Zenchu President Akira Banzai by Tuesday, May 27, Green said the draft proposals “would clearly attack the very fundamental principles of the (co-operative) … Continue reading

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【News】 Hokkaido farmers fight to increase milk production (May 27, 2014)

  Shingo Oka In Hokkaido, which produces half of the total raw milk supply in the nation, farmers and primary agricultural cooperatives are working to recover decline in the region’s milk production due to the increasing number of people giving up farming. Dairy farmers are actively promoting their products to consumers, while agricultural cooperatives are setting up dairy products companies to maintain the number of cows and create employment opportunities. In fiscal 2013, Hokuren Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives, which is engaged in sales and marketing of farm products in Hokkaido, was entrusted with 3,758,845 tons of raw milk, down 1.7 percent from the previous year. The drop was especially large … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Japan must stand as one against pressure to open markets (May 22, 2014)

  Ministerial meeting of the Trans-Pacific Partnership member nations in Singapore ended without much progress. However, when Prime Ministecxgvcr Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama met in April, the two nations are reported to have agreed on a “formula” to reach a bilateral deal, and worries are growing among the public over the possibility that Japanese negotiators would make a compromise regarding tariffs on key agricultural products. Rounds of TPP negotiations are expected to take place before chief negotiators meet in July, and we must work together to reaffirm domestic consensus on the negotiating policies. What the negotiators mean by the term “formula” is to find common ground by … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Breakup of the JA group must be avoided at any cost (May 15, 2014)

  The Council for Regulatory Reform has released its proposal on agricultural reform which calls for revisions of agricultural committees, agricultural cooperatives and agricultural production corporations. It is a monstrously unjust proposal which paves the way for private companies’ unrestricted entries into the agricultural sector and practically forces the Japan Agricultural Cooperatives (JA) group to split up. We cannot possibly accept the proposal which is uncomprehending and ignorant of the fact that the JA group is a private cooperative organization. The JA group is now in the heat of reforming itself. We must work together to fight back against moves to dissolve the group. The proposal is an apparent effort … Continue reading

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【News】 LDP to come up with agricultural reform plan in June (May 15, 2014)

  The ruling Liberal Democratic Party will compile its own agricultural reform plan which is likely to be less drastic than the government panel’s proposal and conforms to farmers’ objectives, party officials said. The LDP’s two project teams, which have been discussing since March on how to reform agricultural organizations, plan to release their proposals in early June, they said. Many LDP lawmakers representing the agricultural sector pointed out that the government panel’s proposal lacks the viewpoints of farmers and rural communities, saying that they cannot see how the proposal actually leads to an increase in farmers’ incomes. They said the panel’s proposal, which includes abolishment of the umbrella bodies … Continue reading

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