【Interview】 Government is “betraying” its people regarding the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks: Takashi Shinohara, head of the Democratic Party of Japan’s group “cautious” about the TPP (July 17, 2015)

Posted on 2015-07-17 by The Japan Agricultural News

  Q. How do you see the government’s negotiating stance on the TPP scheme? A. The government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party continue to lie about the TPP, betraying the Japanese people and farmers. The LDP won the Lower House election in 2012 by pledging not to participate in the TPP framework. But in March 2013, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced that Japan will join the talks. Since then, the government has changed their way of saying many times and is becoming more and more aggressive. What happened to the promise that the government will work to exempt key items from tariff cuts? The government should engage in negotiations … Continue reading →

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【News】 Take, read and eat all five of them! (July 16, 2015)

Posted on 2015-07-16 by The Japan Agricultural News

Kotaro Yamada An operator of the Ishinomori Manga Museum in Ishinomaki-shi, Miyagi Prefecture, started to sell five kinds of pouched curries in the packages that look exactly like comic books. The curry sets named “Ishinomaki Curry Zenshu (Ishinomaki Curry Series)” will go on sale on July 19, 2015. The operator, Machizukuri Manbo, produced them in order to help restore the area that was hit by the East Japan Great Earthquake. The press release and briefing took place in Ginza, Tokyo, on June 15. The recipes are all original and created being supervised by five local restaurants and shops including a grilled eel restaurant and a meat shop. The curries are … Continue reading →

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【Opinion】 Are agricultural co-ops old-fashioned? (July 14, 2015)

Posted on 2015-07-14 by The Japan Agricultural News

  Senior special writer, Masaru Yamada “Agricultural co-ops are old-fashioned and do not contribute to strengthening agriculture. It is necessary to get the help of private companies.” This is what supporters of the ongoing agricultural co-operatives reform apparently think. But when we turn our eyes abroad, we see a different landscape. Many industrialized countries are pushing to empower farmers’ organizations. Are they going in the wrong direction, or is Japan going the wrong way? The Australian government released the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper on Monday, July 6, and outlined initiatives and commitments by the government on five priority areas to ensure a stronger farm sector. At the top of the … Continue reading →

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【News】 Cabinet approval rating hits all-time low of 36%, reflecting concerns over agricultural reform (July 14, 2015)

Posted on 2015-07-14 by The Japan Agricultural News

  The approval rating for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet was 36 percent, the lowest since he returned to power in December 2012, according to an opinion poll conducted by The Japan Agricultural News. The disapproval rating was 61 percent, higher than the approval rate by more than 20 percentage points. A total of 75 percent of respondents either strongly or somewhat disapprove the Abe administration’s agricultural policies. Opponents to the security bills which the government is aiming to pass in the current Diet session exceeded 60 percent. The poll was conducted on 1,150 monitors of the newspaper, mainly farmers, between the end of June and early July. 826 responded … Continue reading →

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【News】 Ruby Roman grapes from Ishikawa Prefecture sold for JPY1 million at first Kanazawa auction (July 10, 2015)

Posted on 2015-07-10 by The Japan Agricultural News

A single bunch of Ruby Roman table grapes fetched record-breaking JPY1 million (plus consumption tax) on July 9, 2015, at this year’s first auction in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Prefecture. The record-setting bunch of Ruby Roman grapes was rated premium and weighted around 700 grams. Thanks to the opening of the Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet train line, the selling price far surpassed the previous record of JPY550,000 logged last year. Winning bidder Masayuki Hirai, head chef of Hotel Nikko Kanazawa, said that he wanted to buy the best bunch of Ruby Roman to get his guests see there is something very special in Ishikawa Prefecture. He plans to serve the grapes as a … Continue reading →

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