After decades of sharp policy swings since World War II, rice farmers are greeting the government's latest call to boost output with skepticism.
In the war's aftermath, returning servicemen and repatriates swelled the population while farm production lagged. Rations fell short, and the government raced to raise output — concentrating on rice, the national staple.
As reconstruction made progress, however, surpluses emerged and policy flipped to production controls known as gentan, the paddy field reduction program.
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