Japan’s National Council for Export Promotion of Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Products held a general assembly on Friday, November 1, and participants confirmed the council’s target of doubling exports of agricultural products to JPY 1 trillion by 2020.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told the assembly that export drive is one of the most important agricultural policies. Abe said he was impressed by the popularity of Japanese dishes when he visited overseas, and encouraged agricultural industries to work on expanding exports with confidence.
The government adopted a growth strategy which includes the goal of doubling agricultural exports to JPY 1 trillion by 2020 from the current JPY 450 billion. The council plans to work on meeting the target by increasing the popularity of Japanese foods abroad.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has come up with what it calls the “FBI strategy,” which includes boosting exports of food items shipped “from” Japan, appealing food culture and industries developed “by” Japan and promoting specific agricultural products made “in” Japan by implementing different export strategies for each country and food item which the ministry compiled in August.
Referring to reports that traditional Japanese food is expected to be registered as an intangible cultural heritage asset in early December, Agricultural minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said the registration will be a very favorable wind for Japan’s exports of agricultural products.
Ambassadors of 94 countries and regions were invited to taste Japanese dishes the same day. Five people were awarded for outstanding contributions to promoting Japanese food overseas and expanding exports of Japanese food products.
(Nov. 2, 2013)