Food self-sufficiency rate in Japan remained at 39 percent measured by calorific intake in fiscal 2013 for the fourth consecutive year. The rate – the lowest among major industrialized nations – is far from the government’s target of reaching the 50 percent mark by fiscal 2020. This is totally absurd. Considering the predicted worldwide food shortage, we have no time to spare to reinforce agricultural production through strategic use of rice paddies.
Calorie-based food self-sufficiency rates of major industrialized nations in 2011 were 258 percent in Canada, 129 percent in France and 127 percent in the United States. Even for nations with sufficiency rates below 100 percent, the figures are as high as 92 percent in Germany, 72 percent in Britain, 66 percent in Netherlands and 57 percent in Switzerland.
Self-sufficiency of grains, which is one of the indicators to measure a nation’s power, is deteriorating even more in Japan. The rate is 28 percent including feed grains, ranking 125th out of 178 surveyed countries, roughly the same as African nations such as Botswana and Namibia. The low self-sufficiency rate in Japan is partly attributable to high dependency on imported grains.
The international community is facing a serious task of maintaining food security. Conditions such as increasing global population, rising demand for livestock products in developing countries with rapid economic growth, expanding use of biofuels, growing intensity of extreme weather events and limited water resources will further tighten the supply-demand balance in the international food market. Moreover, the recent high levels of feed grain prices are threatening the foundation of Japan’s livestock farming.
It is necessary for Japan to establish a system to become as self-sufficient as other industrialized countries. The pressing issue is to improve the self-sufficiency of animal feed, which remains at as low as 26 percent. In an effort to fully utilize rice paddies, the government in April began providing direct-payment subsidies to growers of strategic crops, and one of such crops is rice for livestock feed.
The government offers subsidies to those shifting crops to rice varieties used for livestock feed or rice flour production, and the amount of payment is decided according to yields, which would encourage farmers to produce more. Wheat, soybeans, fodder crops and whole crop rice silage are also important crops which can help raise the food self-sufficiency rate, and agricultural regions are trying to promote cultivation of such products by making use of government grants and regional strengths. However, it is no use pressing farmers to expand production of rice for animal feed or rice flour if there is no demand. The government should work on creating new demand so that farmers can come up with plans to meet such demands.
Japan’s imports of agricultural produce amount to JPY6 trillion, and corn, wheat and soybeans together occupy 14 percent of the imports. If such crops are produced at home instead of depending on imports, it will lead to utilization of abandoned farmlands and increase in farmers’ income, and eventually to a higher self-sufficiency rate. It is a significant part of agricultural policymaking and sufficient assistance measures should be maintained in this area.
Also important is each individual’s efforts to consume domestically-grown products. The recent food scandal involving a Chinese food processing firm supplying expired chicken meat should provide an opportunity for producers to demonstrate the safety and high quality of Japanese-grown produce and let consumers reaffirm the importance of being self-sufficient. The government should further expand requirements for place-of-origin labeling on processed foods, and consumers should try to increase purchases of domestically-grown products at supermarkets and farmers’ markets, as well as cooking and eating more at home. Each and every one of us can strive to be more self-sufficient.
(Aug. 7, 2014)