TOKYO, July 28 ― Japan’s agriculture and trade ministries — the two longtime adversaries due to the government policies — are now working together to boost farm exports.
The two ministries have set up a joint committee to discuss ways to expand agriculture exports such as Japanese beef and rice flour.
The committee will also look at how to strengthen marketing of the Japan Food Product Overseas Promotion Center (JFOODO), a government-backed agency that promotes Japanese food exports.
The committee is expected to meet once a month and the first meeting was set to hold on Aug. 8.
The move comes as Japan has set a target of 1 trillion yen in agricultural exports in 2019.
Last year, the country’s agriculture exports totaled a record 807.1 billion yen, but a slower pace than the government had hoped for. It needs 11.3 percent annual growth rate, if it wants to reach the target.