TOME, Feb. 24 ― A farmers’ cooperative in Miyagi prefecture has set a target to more than double its rice exports this year in a bid to boost rice growers’ incomes. JA Miyagi Tome said it aims to export 2,000 metric tons this year from the current level of 938 metric tons, which is one of the highest level of shipments among Japanese rice growing regions. JA Miyagi Tome highlights Hong Kong and Taiwan as major destinations, but it said it will export to Australia and Singapore as well. The new target comes as Japan faces shrinking domestic demand for rice posed by a rapidly ageing and declining population with … Continue reading →

TOKYO, March. 27 ― Japan has filled a guaranteed share of the U.S.’s annual tariff rate quota (TRQ) for wagyu beef imports as of March 20, highlighting strong demand for Japanese beef in the U.S. According to data released by the United States Customs and Border Protection on March 26, Japanese exporters already used up the U.S. 200-ton TRQ of wagyu beef in three months this year. That was three weeks earlier, compared with last year, which filled the quota on April 10, 2018. Once Japan hits the quota limit, the U.S. tariff on Japanese beef imports will rise to a 26.4 percent tariff of the export value, from the … Continue reading →

TOKYO, March. 22 ― Strong sales of Japanese wagyu beef to the U.S. have made exporters almost use up tariff rate quota (TRQ) in three months this year, triggering a 26.4 percent out-of-quota tariff rate on exports into the U.S. According to data released by the United States Customs and Border Protection, Japan exported 197.6 metric tons of wagyu beef to the U.S. as of March 18, reaching 99 percent of its 200 metric tons of U.S. annual TRQ. The pace of the Japanese beef exports to the U.S. has been accelerating over the years. In 2016, wagyu beef exports filled the quota in November. They filled it in the … Continue reading →

TOKYO, Feb. 19 – The committee for the UN Declaration for the Rights of Peasants and the Decade of Family Farming 2019-2028 in Japan held a meeting at the members’ office building for the house of councilors in Nagata-cho, Tokyo, on February 18.  The network of academic leaders and civil groups gathered to explain the reality surrounding small farmers and their problems and make sure that they are reflected in future governmental policy, as the UN Decade of Family Farming is starting this year. The meeting was attended by approximately 100 farmers and researchers, who gathered in Tokyo to discuss the matters with government officials. Shushi Okazaki addressed “the proposals … Continue reading →