TOKYO, April 1 — Japan’s Kindai University is to offer an agribusiness program on intellectual property rights related to food products at its agriculture faculty from September.
The program is a first attempt by the agriculture ministry to collaborate with a university on this subject. The ministry hopes investing in education on IPRs may help prepare a new generation to lead Japan’s agriculture industry.
The move comes at a time when theft of Japanese agriculture breeds is hurting the nation’s exports.
In 2015, Japan set up its GI system to guarantee the protected status of food products, helping farmers to differentiate their products from competing products in the market.
Moreover, it enables them to build a reputation of quality that is linked to the geographical origin.
The Japanese government is also working to extend its GI system globally through bilateral trade agreements.
It aims to tackle food fraud, ensure quality, protect regional and traditional food industries and to support a price premium for regional produce.