Category Archives: Food & Agriculture

Fall armyworms, damaging crops worldwide, discovered in Japan for first time

KAGOSHIMA, July 4 – Fall armyworm larvae have been found in a field corn crop in Minamikyushu, Kagoshima Prefecture, the first discovery of the exotic invasive pest in the country, the Kagoshima Prefectural Government announced on July 3. The prefectural government is working together with the agricultural ministry to prevent the spread of the insect, a type of moth that have been causing great damage to crops worldwide in recent years. The ministry, which has been preparing for possible invasion of the pest, believes the insect flew into the prefecture. Fall armyworm larvae eat away gramineous crops such as rice and corn, as well as turnips, cucumbers, tomatoes, egg plants, … Continue reading

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Sushi roll artist helping local farmers

Sushi with strawberries, mandarin oranges and cherries – a 33-year-old homemaker in Suzuka City, Mie Prefecture, Aki Yamaoka is giving a helping hand to local rice farmers by creating several kinds of artistic sushi rolls featuring local agricultural products. The sushi rolls are called “kazari makizushi” in Japanese. They are made of rice colored with red pickled ginger and other ingredients, as well as vegetables and cheese. You arrange them delicately so that the cross-section will show motifs when the roll is cut. So far, she’s created more than 150 kinds of them with motifs she took from agricultural products and 12 Japanese zodiac animals, for example. Yamaoka always uses … Continue reading

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Domestic soybeans in natto production reach 22 percent in 2018, increasing 2.5 times in five years

TOKYO, June 24 – Domestically-grown soybeans occupied 22 percent of soybeans used to produce natto in 2018, marking the highest proportion since statistics were first compiled in 2003, according to Japan Natto Cooperative Society Federation. Makers of the fermented soybeans are increasing the use of domestic soybeans in response to growing tendency among consumers to opt for food items produced in Japan, and also because such soybeans are more suited to processing compared to imported ones. However, since imported soybeans still occupy nearly 80 percent of soybeans used in natto production, efforts by producing regions to respond to growing demands will become the key to raising the nation’s self-sufficiency of … Continue reading

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Norinchukin Bank partners with two Southeast Asian bank

TOKYO, March. 23 ― Norinchukin Bank, the cooperative financial arms of Japan’s largest farmers’ group, has designated Vietnam’s investment development bank and the Philippines’ BDO Unibank to be its partner banks to address the financing needs in the Southeast Asian region. Norinchukin Bank offers various banking services and providing financial support for the development of Japanese agricultural sector. The two Southeast Asian banks will serve the overall banking requirements of the Japanese bank’s customers who want to invest and establish their business in the region for the first time, Norinchukin Bank said on March 22.

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Reaching agreement in Japan-U.S. trade talks in August difficult: senior LDP official

TOKYO, June 7 – Hiroshi Moriyama, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s Diet affairs chief, said on June 6 that it is difficult for Japan and the United States to reach agreement in trade talks in August. According to attendants of a meeting of heads of agricultural coop’s prefectural unions held in Tokyo, Moriyama, in charge of economic agreements as the chairman of the party’s headquarters for the TPP, Japan-EU EPA and the Japan-U.S. TAG, said in a speech that it will still take time to conduct working-level negotiations. “We can’t possibly (reach a deal) in August,” he said. In May during his visit to Tokyo, U.S. President Donald Trump said: … Continue reading

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