Odor control has now become one of the biggest concerns for cattle breeders. According to the agriculture ministry, roughly 2,000 cattle farms nationwide received complaints from residents in their neighborhood in 2013, up some 100 from the previous year, out of which 60 percent were related to odor. Although farmers are taking various measures to reduce malodors, the number of complaints does not decline as they expect, as more housing developments encroach on agricultural lands. The task is becoming even harder as the government strengthened regulations on odor emissions. The ministry survey showed that 1,970 farms received complaints in 2013, with the largest percentage – 61 percent – related to … Continue reading →

  The government will take new measures from the 2015 fiscal year to pay more subsidies to agricultural activities in “super-steep areas” with extremely steep gradient through the direct payment system for intermediate and mountainous areas, which provides subsidies to agricultural activities in those areas, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) said Wednesday, August 20. They will provide more support to the areas in a worse condition that impose more burdens on farming. The necessary budget will be included in the fiscal 2015 budget requests. The MAFF proposed a plan of important matters to be included in the fiscal 2015 budget requests at the joint meeting of agriculture … Continue reading →