Tag Archives: News

【News】 Government advisory panel calls for raising food self-sufficiency to 45 percent (March 25, 2015)

  The Council of Food, Agriculture and Rural Area Policies submitted a new ten-year basic plan for food, agriculture and rural areas to agriculture minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Tuesday, March 24, which includes a goal of increasing the nation’s calorie-based food self-sufficiency rate to 45 percent from the current 39 percent. The panel, headed by Prof. Shinichi Shogenji of Nagoya University’s Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences, presented numerical targets for the government’s agricultural policies, such as expanding production of rice for feed, consolidating farmlands to be managed by large-scale, ambitious farmers and increasing farmers’ income. The plan, which is revised every five years, is expected to be approved by the … Continue reading

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【News】 Kumquat peel activates natural killer cells, research in Miyazaki finds (March 24, 2015)

  Masahito Suiko, professor at University of Miyazaki’s Faculty of Agriculture in Miyazaki, and Miyazaki JA Food Research & Development Inc. have scientifically proven through a joint research that kumquat peel can activate natural killer (NK) cells, a component of the innate immune system. NK cells defend the body from infection by recognizing and destroying such cells as tumor cells and virus-infected cells. The research team said they believe beta-cryptoxanthin, a type of carotenoid contained in kumquat peel, has the effect of activating NK cells. The results of the research are expected to appear in the May issue of Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry, an English magazine published by Japan Society … Continue reading

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【News】 Boys be strong and generous like great samurai worriers (March 23, 2015)

  Tetsuya Onda The entire wall is covered by Samurai warriors who vibrantly stare at you. Don’t worry. This is pretty much the norm for Musha-e-no-Sato studio at this time of the year and the warriors are printed on Musha-e Nobori, which are Japanese banners with paintings of armed Samurai worriers or Shoki (a traditional Chinese deity said to prevent plagues and ward off evil beings). Musha-e-no-Sato literally means “home to worrier prints.” The shop in Ichikai-cho, Tochigi Prefecture, is specialized in Musha-e artworks and runs through generations to generations from the Meiji Era. With the Boy’s Day several weeks away, its third generation owner and artisan of the studio, … Continue reading

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【News】 Dedicating new green Tatami mats for prayers (March 15, 2015)

-Re-covering tatami mats of Church’ (Amakusa-shi, Kumamoto Prefecture)- Tetsuya Onda Sakitsu Catholic Church in Amakusa-shi, Kumamoto Prefecture, is one of a few churches with Tatami flooring inside in Japan. In late February, there were 13 Tatami mat craftsmen working in the church, renewing the Tatami facings as volunteers in what they call “Tatami Dedication” activity. The members of Tatamiya Dojo, a group of Tatami mat craftmen, spent 3 days to renew all 60 Tatami facings. Tatamiya Dojo was established in 2007, headed by Yoshiaki Kagami, a 43-year-old Tatami artisan from Sagae-shi, Yamagata Prefecture, and joined by 15 Tatami manufacturers nationwide that decided to use only domestic straw matting, particularly those … Continue reading

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【News】 Nagano fights ecosystem invasion of signal crayfish – by eating them (March 10, 2015)

The Nagano Prefectural Government’s Shimoina branch in Iida and the local government of Matsukawa have jointly held an event in Matsukawa to taste dishes which use signal crayfish, an invasive alien species found at Katagiri Lake Dam operated by the prefecture. Cooking signal crayfish is part of their efforts to stem the spread of the species. Local restaurants presented various ways of cooking signal crayfish, such as putting them in fried rice or dressing them with mayonnaise. Kiyoshi Matsuzawa, 66-year-old chef of Japanese restaurant Mifuku, said although signal crayfish are small in size, their taste and flavor is good enough to be treated as a gourmet food. Signal crayfish, originating … Continue reading

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