Business May 11, 2020
AI tapped in Japan to locate fertile fishing areas and pass on skills
System database provides not only past catch volumes in certain locations but also the intuition of experienced fishermen.
Business / Economy Apr 15, 2020
Japan to help those left jobless by virus find work in farming
The agriculture ministry will encourage people who have lost their jobs due to the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic to work in the farm industry by offering financial support. In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, approximately 1,900 Chinese and other foreign technical interns have ...
National Mar 11, 2020
Japan's agriculture ministry to keep food self-sufficiency target at 45%
The agriculture ministry revealed Tuesday that it would maintain its goal of increasing the country's calorie-based food self-sufficiency rate to 45 percent by fiscal 2030, unchanged from the current target for years through fiscal 2025. In fiscal 2018, which ended in March 2019, the food ...
Business Feb 7, 2020
Japan 2019 farm exports edged up, but far short of ¥1 trillion target
Agriculture, fishery and forestry exports in 2019 fell short of the government's ¥1 trillion ($9.1 billion) goal, the farm ministry said Friday, underscoring the challenges facing the nation in its quest to build a larger presence in overseas markets. Preliminary data showed such exports rose ...
National Feb 6, 2020
Japan to raise fines for pork smuggling in bid to contain spread of African swine fever
The agriculture ministry will raise fines for smuggling pork products as part of efforts to prevent African swine fever (ASF) from entering the country. The maximum fine for individuals will be tripled to ¥3 million, the ministry said Wednesday. Penalties for corporations will be raised ...
National Jan 31, 2020
Japan farm ministry sets preventive culling guidelines for African swine fever
A farm ministry panel on Friday approved a plan to allow the preventive culling of healthy pigs within 3 km of confirmed African swine fever outbreaks. The measure will be included in the ministry's guidelines under the revised law on controlling domestic animal infectious diseases, ...
National Jan 24, 2020
Tainted pork in pig feed may have caused swine fever in Okinawa, panel says
Pigs in Okinawa Prefecture may have been infected with classical swine fever through food, an expert panel commissioned by the agricultural ministry said Thursday. Leftovers, including pork infected with swine fever in Honshu, may have caused an outbreak of the disease in Okinawa earlier this ...
National Jan 23, 2020
Japan plans wider pig culls if African swine fever discovered
In the event a pig with African swine fever (ASF) is found at a farm, all pigs at farms within up to 3 kilometers of the affected facility could be culled in order to prevent the highly pathogenic disease from spreading, agriculture ministry sources ...
National Jan 20, 2020
Japan mulling legislation to ban smuggling of wagyu genetic materials
The agriculture ministry will propose a new law aimed at preventing the smuggling to other countries of genetic materials, such as fertilized eggs and semen, related to wagyu cattle. The envisioned law allows requests for injunctions against improper trading of such genetic materials and, if ...
National Jan 19, 2020
Planned online system will link food banks with manufacturers, retailers
The farm ministry will launch an online system in fiscal 2020 to link food banks with food donors to support needy people and families while cutting food waste, officials said Saturday. Under the envisaged system, food manufacturers and retailers input information such as type, quantity ...
National Jan 8, 2020
The Okinawa Prefectural Government plans to cull more than 1,800 pigs at the farm in the city of Uruma and another farm where infection is suspected.
National Dec 20, 2019
Japan expands swine fever vaccinations to seven more prefectures
The government said Friday it will expand vaccinations of pigs against hog cholera to cover Tokyo and seven prefectures adjacent to the 12 prefectures with confirmed cases of the deadly virus. The vaccinations may start later this month in Tokyo, Kanagawa, Niigata, Kyoto and Nara, ...