Category Archives: Food & Agriculture

TOKYO, May 8 — Japan is seeing a pickup in demand for brand wagyu beef along with a sharp increase in foreign tourists, brought about by eased border controls. Some yakiniku grilled beef restaurants say 80 percent of their customers are travelers from foreign countries. The high demand for wagyu beef is having a positive impact also on markets for beef carcasses and calves nationwide which have been hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and inflation, leading to growing expectations in breeding regions for a further boost. 80 percent of customers In the Hida-Takayama district in Gifu Prefecture, a popular tourist destination for travelers at home and abroad, restaurants and meat … Continue reading →

HIROSHIMA, Apr. 8 – “Citrus Supporter” program led by the Onomichi Tourist Association in Hiroshima Prefecture has become a successfully model to help citrus farm operators on the islands of Setouchi Inland Sea. The citrus section of a local agricultural cooperative association in Hiroshima Prefecture, JA Hiroshima, also supports the program by gathering Cito-supo (a shorter name for Citrus Supporters) for farmers facing workforce shortages. The program has approximately 130 registered members, many from Hiroshima and some from other prefectures. The association intends to make it a new tourist attraction, bring more people, and revitalize the regional economy. The scheme was launched in January 2022. Many citrus farmers on Setouchi … Continue reading →

CHIBA, April 3 — JAS, an agricultural production corporation in Minamiboso, Chiba Prefecture, began growing strawberries in New Zealand where seasons are opposite. The corporation aims to realize year-round supply of strawberries by producing them abroad during summer when domestic yield is low. It manages the crops remotely from Japan using its own environmental control system. JAS grows strawberries including the Benihoppe and Oi C Berry varieties on its 1.4-hectare farm with the annual yield of around 70 tons. It ties up with farms in four locations nationwide to engage in other businesses such as sales of seedlings and agritourism. At all of the farms, including the one in New … Continue reading →

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 →

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 →