【News】 “Wagyu” beef brands springing up in US (July 4, 2014)

  Hana Saito,  Masaru Yamada 25 beef brands including the word “wagyu” (meaning Japanese beef) are registered in the United States with 12 more filed under application as of Thursday, July 3, it was learned. Beef dealers are becoming eager to register their brands as wagyu beef, as they see business chances in the increasing popularity of Japanese cuisine. The National Federation of Agricultural Co-operative Associations (JA Zen-Noh), which markets agricultural products made in Japan, has also applied for trademark registration of wagyu beef. In the U.S., however, beef from wagyu-cross cattle is also marketed as wagyu beef. In order for Japan to promote U.S.-bound beef exports amid intensifying market … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Don’t let Japan become a nation which can fight a war (July 2, 2014)

  Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has made a political decision which betrays the Japanese people. His Cabinet formally reinterpreted the Constitution on Tuesday, July 1, reading it as permitting at least partial use of the right of collective self-defense. This allows Japan to aid allies such as the United States if they come under military attack, even when Japan itself was not under direct attack. The authorization runs counter to the war-renouncing principle of the Article 9 and marks a landmark shift in the postwar security policy. The Abe administration forced the decision through, ignoring the public and without sufficient Diet discussions. Abe should seek a public mandate on whether … Continue reading

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【News】 Passing Down History of Japan’s New World Heritage to Children (June 29, 2014)

  Kotaro Yamada – Junior Tour Guide Training Program at Tomioka Silk Mill – (Tomioka-shi, Gunma Prefecture) The city of Tomioka in Gunma Prefecture is now offering its first course targeting local children who are interested in becoming junior tour guides at a new World Cultural Heritage, Tomioka Silk Mill. The program aims to provide children with thorough knowledge of the history and cultural importance of the mill and let them have opportunities to lead visitors. “How big is the mill?” asked a student. “It’s three times bigger than the Tokyo Dome or seven times bigger than a soccer stadium,” answered Takatoshi Sato, 74, a veteran guide who is also … Continue reading

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【Editorial】 Buckwheat soba – starting down the road to value-added agriculture (June 28, 2014)

  Soba (Japanese for buckwheat) is recently attracting attention as a key product to promote use of farmlands and increase the nation’s food self-sufficiency rate, and at the same time offer opportunities for farmers to expand their businesses to processing and marketing. Many soba producing regions managed to increase production by introducing varieties which are harvested in summer instead of in autumn or those with higher content of certain nutrients. Soba is definitely a product with huge potential, if producers can stabilize yield by taking measures to cope with its vulnerability to wet damage. Production of soba expanded largely after the introduction of individual-household income compensation system in fiscal 2011, … Continue reading

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【News】 Abe eager to conduct sweeping overhaul of agricultural co-operative group (June 25, 2014)

  The government revised its 10-year plan to revitalize the agricultural industry and regions on Tuesday, June 24, newly including abolishment of the agricultural hierarchy headed by the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu). Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the same day the current top-down structure of JA-Zenchu having legal authority to supervise management of primary agricultural co-operatives will be scrapped. The issue is likely to become a major focus of debate to be held in autumn through the year-end, as the ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers who are close to the agricultural industry strongly oppose to the government’s plan. The 10-year plan, which was compiled last year, was revised … Continue reading

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