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[Music]
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[Applause]
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rice farming is believed to have come to
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Japan from mainland Asia approximately
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three thousand years ago since then it
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has been playing a central role in
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Japanese agriculture and the formation
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of Japanese society culture and
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traditions when Japan opened up to the
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outside world during the Meiji
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Restoration period in the late 19th
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century the government worked to
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introduce Western technologies and
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systems in order to modernize and
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industrialize the country the government
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also imported and tried to adapt Western
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agricultural practices however since
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Japanese agriculture centered on rice
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farming by small-scale family operated
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farms only a portion of these techniques
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were suitable for them meanwhile
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experienced farmers across Japan
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possessed a wealth of technical skills
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based on their extensive experiences
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such locally developed farming
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techniques were kept within the villages
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and domains of feudal society when the
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nation's centralized its power during
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the Meiji period during the late 19th to
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early 20th century regional networking
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events for veteran farmers were held to
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accumulate locally dispersed farming
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techniques to spread across the nation
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and to formulate a standardized rice
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farming technology gradually as a result
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the productivity of Agriculture
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increased by 1.5 times and production
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value of Agriculture nearly doubled in
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the 45 year period from 1880 to 1925
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in addition in order to acquire foreign
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currency the government worked to
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encourage the export of silk and other
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commercial agricultural products into
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foreign markets one prime example of
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this is the Tomioka silk mill which is
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now a registered World Heritage Site the
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Tomioka silk mill popularized overseas
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silk making techniques across japan
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resulting in high quality Japanese silks
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from the Meiji period to the early show
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up period this silk became an important
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export in helping Japan acquire foreign
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currencies mortality rates and
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agricultural regions declined during the
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Meiji era the population increased and
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many people migrated from rural to
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metropolitan areas this migration of
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people created a labor force that was
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crucial to industrialization
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moreover the increase in agricultural
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productivity and crop diversity resulted
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in an abundance of low-cost foods which
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contributed to the development of
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industrial sectors
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[Music]
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with the start of world war ii labor
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shortages from military service and air
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bombing of production hubs dealt
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catastrophic blows to food production in
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japan after the war many citizens lacked
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sufficient access to food increasing
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food production became a crucial
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government issue after the war the
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government immediately tackled farmland
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reforms
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farm land reforms reduced tenant farm
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land area from 46 percent to less than
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10 percent the landlord tenant farmer
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system so far was abolished creating a
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significant number of independent
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farmers in rural areas these newly
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independent farmers were highly
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motivated to increase productivity the
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passage of the agricultural improvement
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promotion asked in 1948 and the
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resulting launch of the Agricultural
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Extension Service significantly
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contributed to an increase in food
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production the agricultural improvement
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promotion Act played a vital role in
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both improving agricultural technologies
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and improving daily life in rural areas
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rural residents particularly farmers
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lives receive support from life
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improvement extension officers
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dispatched to each Prefecture the
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improved living standards of villagers
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motivating them to apply their own ideas
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and help each other
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furthermore the formulation of the
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agricultural cooperatives Act in 1947
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resulted in the establishment of
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agricultural cooperatives across the
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country which operated a range of
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services for farmers including credit
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purchasing supplies joint marketing and
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insurance primary agricultural
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cooperatives organized unions at a
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prefectural level and a federation at
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national level and they played a
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significant role in the formation of
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agricultural policies after the war as
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Japan recovered after the war the
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country experienced a period of high
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economic growth
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however this rapid growth created income
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disparities between the agricultural and
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industrial sectors to address this the
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government established the agricultural
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basic Act in 1961 and took initiatives
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to improve agricultural productivity
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stabilize the prices of products and
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strengthen the infrastructures of
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agricultural production around the same
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time demand for labor in the industrial
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sector was rising spurring employment
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opportunities in major cities and
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regional hubs the mechanization of
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Agriculture reduced the need for farm
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labor allowing farmers to increase their
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income through secondary sources of
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income
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these part-time farmers generally work
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on their farms during the weekend with
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spouses and grandparents handling farm
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work rather than adult men this has led
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to the contemporary problem of Aging in
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rural areas and a shortage of successors
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to farm
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[Music]
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however if we look at this phenomena
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from another perspective the increase in
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part-time farmers and improvements in
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agricultural labor efficiency spurred by
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mechanization are contributing to high
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economic growth by adding to the
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workforce and industrial sectors this
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graph shows rice production in Japan
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from 1940 onwards
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while Japan achieved self-sufficiency of
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rice production in the 1960s per-capita
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consumption
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subsequently began to decline high
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economic growth increased incomes and
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changed consumer dietary habits which
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expanded consumption of vegetables
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fruits animal products like dairy and
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meats and wheat based foods such as
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breads and noodles while decreasing
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consumption of rice as a staple crop
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meanwhile a food control system which
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purchased rice set a government set
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price to support farm income resulted in
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an era of
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overabundance as rice production did not
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respond to the demands of the market in
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addition maintaining this food control
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system resulted in significant increase
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of government expenditures to address
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this the government implemented
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countermeasures to suppress rice
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production and encourage production of
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vegetables fruits animal products wheat
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and soybeans
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furthermore the government expanded
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agricultural support not just for rice
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but began to target other in-demand
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agricultural products as well as the
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economy became more globalized
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negotiations over the liberalization of
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agricultural products at GATT became
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difficult negotiations started at the
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GATT Uruguay round in 1986 concluded in
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1993 and resulted in significant
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reduction of trade barrier of
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agricultural commodities at the same
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time Japanese agricultural products were
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affected by currency conversion rates
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which created tough competition over
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low-cost imports strengthening
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Agriculture's international
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competitiveness became a significant
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issue now in the 21st century Japan
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enters the new daehwa era facing
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numerous agricultural challenges the
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first challenge is growing international
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competition spurred by an increase in
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agricultural productivity while farm
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land reforms created many independent
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farmers farms are extremely small in
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size in 1965 a single Japanese farmer
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was only farming an average of 1.1
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hectares this continued for decades
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fifty years later in 2017 the average
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farm was only approximately 2.9 hectares
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in size which is extremely small when
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compared to Europe and the USA rice
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production in particular is facing
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significant challenges when it comes to
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increasing productivity by concentrating
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farmland and expanding the scale of
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operations the second challenge is
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developing agricultural leaders who
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succeed to farming in Japan an aging
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population and decline in agricultural
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workers has created dire conditions
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as globalization continues it is
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important to cultivate young people who
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are attracted to agriculture as an
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industry and encourage new entry into
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agriculture from other industries the
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third challenge is ensuring food
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security as food preferences among
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consumers change the self-sufficiency
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rate of food has declined since the
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1980s presently only 39% of dietary
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energy intake is sourced from domestic
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production with more farms being
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abandoned and the area of arable land
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decreasing food security in Japan has
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become a major challenge the fourth
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challenge it's creating harmony between
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agriculture and the environment
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agriculture can serve a wide range of
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functions from water holding capacity
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enhancing flood control function to the
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preservation of beautiful landscapes
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maintaining these functions is crucial
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when it comes to national land
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conservation efforts major agricultural
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challenges in Japan include maintaining
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a harmonious relationship between
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agriculture and the environment and
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protecting agriculture and hilly and
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mountainous regions where it is
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particularly difficult to improve
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productivity by enlarging the
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operational scale
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will now address recent initiatives
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taken to address these challenges first
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our innovations in agriculture research
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is advancing in so-called smart
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agriculture which takes advantage of IOT
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AI and robotic technologies
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technological innovations are expected
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to help rapidly harness productivity and
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encourage environmentally friendly
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agricultural practices the second
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initiative is in new agricultural
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leaders who succeed to farming to date
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farmers have operated their farms based
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on an independent family but in recent
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years we are seeing farming in a
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collective manner formulating
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agricultural corporations by several
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families with regional key agricultural
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leaders emerging agricultural
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corporations operating on the local
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village level are emerging and we are
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gradually beginning to see new
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agricultural initiatives that encourage
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female farmers and those with
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disabilities as agricultural leaders of
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the farms diversify Japan's agricultural
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cooperatives are also working to
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transform their organizations the third
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initiative is encouraging agricultural
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exports so far
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Japan has largely been an importer of
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agricultural products with a limited
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volume of exports however interest in
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Japanese agricultural products known for
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their safety and flavor is increasing
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abroad in recent years initiatives are
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underway to encourage exportation
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Japan's technical prowess and
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agriculture is particularly promising
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when it comes to helping address
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agricultural challenges in developing
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countries
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last is the transition of Agriculture
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into a so-called sixth industry
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initiatives are underway to the
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transition of agriculture into a sixth
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industry by incorporating food
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processing distribution site scene and
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other services the six industry is
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expected to help revitalize agricultural
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areas by expanding employment and
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creating wealth across the region
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[Music]
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japanese agriculture is now entering a
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new era as it transitions from an old
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model of protectionism to a new model of
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aggressive development
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[Music]
