TOKYO, Oct. 6 – Eat onigiri and change the world — a nonprofit organization kicked off a campaign on Oct. 5, asking people to post photographs related to onigiri rice balls on social media to provide school meals for children in need. Under the Onigiri Action campaign organized by TABLE FOR TWO, for every onigiri-related photo posted on the organization’s website or on SNS with a hashtag #OnigiriAction, the campaign’s sponsors and supporters will donate 100 yen, equivalent to five school meals delivered to children in Asia and Africa. The group has been organizing the campaign every year since 2015 around Oct. 16, the day when the United Nations celebrates … Continue reading →

TOKYO, Oct. 16 — A group of Japanese scientists using advanced genome-editing technologies has succeeded in editing genes that contribute to the size of soybeans. The team of agricultural scientists, from Hokkaido University, Yokohama City University and the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, edited the genome from grain. Genome refers to the entire DNA sequence of an organism, and genome editing is to make specific changes to the DNA of an organism. The research team focused on the crop size. “But the results in the lab that show promise could lead to reduced molecules of soy allergens,” said Tetsuya Yamada from Hokkaido University’s graduate research faculty of agriculture. Yet, … Continue reading →