| AKITA, Aug. 23 – A Japanese local agricultural cooperative in Akita Prefecture, JA Akita Shinsei, began selling a box of assorted local agricultural products on August 20 to support local farmers hit by heavy rain that caused significant agricultural damages in July. The JA will use 10% of the revenue to support regional farmers. “We’d like to ask consumers to eat more agricultural products to support affected farmers,” a JA staff said.
The box contains four packs of precooked Akitakomachi rice (200g), four packs of precooked Hitomebore rice (200g), three servings of Akita Yuri Beef curry sauce, and three bags of Inaniwa Udon noodles made of rice powder (180g). One box is priced at 6,000 yen, including tax. The specialty products is sold at the shops in JA Town, an online farmers market portal run by the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (ZEN-NOH). The shops by JA Akita Shinsei and other JAs in Akita and Yamagata Prefectures in the JA Town do not charge shipping until September 4 to support farmers in the affected areas. According to JA, the heavy rain that started on July 25 triggered flooding surrounding the Koyoshi River and its tributaries. Approximately 1,500 hectares of farmland suffered damage, including flooding and landslides.  A JA staff says purchasing a box of assorted local agricultural products can help affected farmers. (In Yuri Honjo City, AkitaPrefecture)
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