【News】 Prices for Japanese Wagyu calves remain high, hitting hard on cattle fattening farms (Sept. 3, 2014)

  Yuji Hosoda Average price of Japanese Wagyu calves marked JPY553,984 per head in August, up 0.4 percent from the previous month, topping the 500,000 yen mark for 12 consecutive months, according to the National Federation of Agricultural Co-operative Associations (JA Zen-Noh). The prices are maintained at a level 10 percent higher than a year before. The prices have been posting a year-on-year drop for three consecutive months until July, but increased again in August as the number of marketed cattle marked the year’s lowest of 20,949. Market dealers worry that the recent trend of high sustained prices would be a disaster for the whole beef production industry, as higher … Continue reading

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【News】 Can children follow Kappa’s teaching? (Aug. 31, 2014)

Tetsuya Onda – Yokkabui (Kinpo-cho, Minamisatsuma, Kagoshima Prefecture) – On August 22 every year in Takahashi district of Kinpo-cho, Minamisatsuma, Kagoshima Prefecture, Yokkabui Festival takes place to pray for avoiding water accidents. This festival is one of Japan’s intangible folk culture assets and has a long history of over 300 years. Its highlight comes when faceless “Ogarappa (big Kappa’ or big water imps)” try to catch children. At around 9:30 in the morning, a bell rang loudly to announce the start of the festival. Then some young male villagers with masks made of palm tree skins and in nightclothes headed for Tamate Shrine from the Community Hall with straw bags … Continue reading

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【News】 Theatrical performance on preservation of native seeds staged in Yamanashi (Aug. 30, 2014)

  Yoshiya Kaneko Do you know where life originates from? The first performance of “Shiawase no Tane” (meaning “Seed of Happiness” in Japanese), a play depicting a young farmer working to preserve the seeds of heirloom vegetable varieties, was held in Ttsuru, Yamanashi Prefecture, on Friday, Aug. 29. The play, which describes the current situation of agriculture and conveys the importance of protecting traditional food culture, will also be staged in Yamagata and Tokyo in October and in other areas nationwide next year. The script of the play was written by Riko Sakaguchi, co-writer of Studio Ghibli animation film The Tale of Princess Kaguya. Veteran actor Tsunehiko Kamijo plays the … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Drastic action against climate change needed (Aug. 28, 2014)

  It is highly likely that western Japan will post the worst shortage of sunlight for August after the end of World War II. How should we face the current climate change, in which extreme weather has become the new normal? Time has come for farmers to think of drastic measures to prepare for disasters beyond expectations which have now turned into nothing out of the ordinary. According to the Meteorological Agency, sunlight hours in early August in both the Sea of Japan and the Pacific sides of western Japan were only 20 percent of an average August. If this trend continues throughout the month, the region is likely to … Continue reading

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【News】 Japan agricultural co-operative chief determined to conduct self-reform (Aug. 28, 2014)

  Akira Banzai, president of the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu), said Wednesday, Aug. 27 that the JA group’s self-reform will become the focus of his second term as the group’s head. “We will soon compile our policies based on the JA group’s own will, taking into account its members’ perspective,” Banzai said during a press conference at Japan National Press Club. In considering measures to reform the group, including revising the system of central and prefectural unions of agricultural co-operatives supervising primary co-ops, he said top priority will be put on increasing agricultural production and income. He stressed that reform measures will be decided in the discussions to … Continue reading

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