Farm minister Tsutomu Takebe said Monday the country should not exclude the farm and fisheries sector when it negotiates free-trade agreements, ministry officials said.
The head of the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry said Japan should carry out such negotiations with a view toward an overall benefit for the nation, they said.
Takebe made the remarks at a ministry meeting with the nation's biggest business lobby, the Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren), held in the morning to exchange views on agriculture, forestry and fisheries policies.