MAFF Senior Personnel Changes Effective July 2, 2004

The major senior personnel changes at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), effective July 2, 2004, are as follows:

Rural Development Bureau Director-General Shinsuke Ohta, and Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Research Council Secretariat Director-General Ichiro Ishihara retire on July 2.

 [Return]

Agricultural Income Sees First Rise in 5 Years in 2003

The 2003 Statistics on Trends in Farm Management, a report of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) published on June 30, reveals that agricultural income per farm household last year rose for the first time in five years. Agricultural income was 1.11 million yen, up 8% on 2002. The increase was the result of poor harvests and a rise in the prices of rice and vegetables due to bad weather. However, economic stagnation has led to a fall in salaries and bonuses, and the total income of farm households, including non-agricultural income, was down for the seventh year in succession at only 7.72 million yen, representing a fall of 1.6% on 2002.

The agricultural gross income of commercial farm households was 3.59 million yen, up 3.5% on 2002 as a result of the rise in the price of rice and vegetables due to shortages. A breakdown of statistics by main-business and side-business farm households shows that agricultural gross income grew more among side-business than among main-business farm households. The agricultural gross income of main-business farm households was 4.74 million yen, up only 1% on 2002.

 [Return]

NIRE Puts Economic Value of Multi-Functionality of Agriculture at 37 Trillion Yen

The National Institute for Rural Engineering (NIRE) on July 6 released the results of calculations that put the economic value of the multi-functional benefits of agriculture, in terms of flood prevention, etc., at around 37 trillion yen. In re-evaluating the multi-functionality of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, NIRE used a new method that takes into account not only of positive effects (benefits) such as prevention of floods and soil erosion, but also of negative impact on the environment (load) such as water pollution. NIRE values the overall benefits arising from multi-functionality at 47.626 trillion yen, and the load at 10.059 trillion yen, giving net benefits of 37.567 trillion yen. This is equivalent to approximately 4 times Japan's total agricultural output for 2002 (9 trillion yen). NIRE also values the prevention of floods on a scale seen every 100 years at 2.63 trillion yen, water purification by paddy fields at 70 billion yen a year, and other functions such as slowing of global warming at 24 billion yen a year.

For the first time, the calculation of the multifunctional benefits of agriculture, forestry and fisheries takes into account the recipients of those benefits. The benefits to agriculture and forestry, valued at 24.59 trillion yen, are the greatest, but the multifunctional benefits range far and wide, with benefits to manufacturing and other industries valued at 3.177 trillion yen and benefits to consumers valued at 5.123 trillion yen.

In view of the fact that the area of agricultural land is declining, NIRE also calculated, on the basis of a survey, how much the people of Japan would be prepared to pay towards maintaining the multifunctions that are being lost. On the basis of the realistic estimate that the area of agricultural land will decline by 20% over the next 30 years, respondents to the survey were asked how much they would be prepared to pay to maintain the multifunctions, given the prospect of a 20% loss. The median amount, around which most responses were concentrated, was approximately 4,400 yen per household per annum.

 [Return]

MAFF Encourages "Paddy-Field Grazing" to Promote Integration of Arable and Livestock Farming in Mountainous Areas

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) is stepping up its efforts to encourage farmers to adopt "paddy-field grazing", with a view to promoting the integration of arable and livestock farming in hilly and mountainous areas. The practice will be subsidized under the rice policy reforms initiated this fiscal year, and is positioned as a key element of the drive to boost forage production. MAFF maintains that, under the right conditions, paddy-field grazing could make a substantial contribution to the preservation of paddy fields converted to the cultivation of other crops and terraced paddy fields. The number of farmers who have adopted the practice is growing, especially in western Japan.

"Paddy-field grazing" is the practice of turning beef cattle out to graze on paddy fields for a given period of time, to promote breeding. MAFF has added "paddy-field grazing" to the list of practices qualifying for subsidization under the "measures to promote integration of arable and livestock farming" which provide for support on top of the subsidies provided under the "production area development measures" that are a key element of rice policy reform measures.  The subsidy will be ￥13,000 in respect of every 10 ares, as for the consolidation of land for the growing of forage crops and green (immature) rice as a fermented roughage crop.

Among other requirements, subsidization is conditional on (1) there being both rice farmers and livestock farmers in the area concerned, (2) the local vision for paddy-field farming clearly identifying the integration of arable and livestock farming as a goal, (3) it being possible to turn cattle out to graze on paddy fields for a period of at least 90. As consolidation is not stipulated, the system is suited to hilly and mountainous areas where it is difficult to consolidate agricultural land.

Paddy-field grazing is spreading, and in 2002, the number of prefectures where it is practiced reached 19, double the number four years earlier.

The MAFF Agricultural Production Bureau is encouraging farmers to adopt paddy-field grazing as being "an advantageous practice in hilly or mountainous areas since it simultaneously promotes livestock farming and the conversion of rice land to other crops".

 [Return]

FSC Draft Report Will Suggest Efficacy of Blanket Testing for BSE is Limited

It was revealed on July 15 that the draft report of the Prion Expert Committee of the Cabinet Office Food Safety Commission (FSC), whose task is to examine the efficacy of BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) countermeasures, states the view that, provided the removal of specified "risk material" is thorough, the consumption of cattle under a certain age, below which BSE tests cannot detect infection, will not present safety problems. The report is to serve as a starting point for debate by the Committee.

Japan's BSE countermeasures aim to ensure the safety of beef and give consumers peace of mind by means of a dual system involving the blanket testing of cattle and the removal of material specified as presenting a risk of infection from carcasses. The draft report endorses the efficacy of this dual system but acknowledges that there are limits to the sensitivity of BSE tests. However, it also takes the position that even if cattle under a certain age are excluded from the testing program, the risk to human health will not increase as long as specified risk material is removed.

The FSC's brief is to make a scientific evaluation of the efficacy of current testing methods, and the actual decision whether or not to review safety measures, including blanket testing, will be made by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, which has overall responsibility for food safety administration.

 [Return]

Pork Import Safeguards to be Activated in August

According to the Foreign Trade Statistics for May 2004, released by the Ministry of Finance on June 29, imports of pork in that month reached 89,289 tons, a level representing growth of 16% on May 2003 (although 33% down on April 2004), and it is now virtually certain that safeguard measures raising tariffs on pork will be activated from August, for the fourth year in succession. The activation of the safeguards will raise the standard import price.

The level of imports in the first quarter of FY 2004 (April-June) required to activate safeguards is 257,004 tons, and the cumulative import volume for April and May was already 222,197 tons, leaving only 34,807 tons to reach the trigger level, and this figure is certain to be exceeded in June.

As import volume for June 2003 was 59,579 tons, one importer comments, "With the continued ban on imports of American beef, the demand for pork is higher than in the average year. There is no way import volume for June can be kept below the 30-40,000 ton level.

 [Return]

Japan Considers Accession as International Plant Genetic Resource Treaty Comes Into Effect

The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture came into effect on June 29. On July 1, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry (MAFF) revealed that it is considering the possibility of Japan acceding to the treaty and may table a bill to this effect as early as during the next session of the Diet.

The object of the Treaty is to facilitate the use of genetic resources relating to plants such as cereals, fruit, vegetables, and feed crops by establishing common international rules and to promote sustainable agriculture and food security by ensuring a fair distribution of the benefits arising from the use of such genetic resources. The Treaty was adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in 2001.

To date, a total of 54 countries have signed the Treaty, which makes it possible to use genetic resources relating to 35 food crops including cereals such as rice, wheat and barley, and fruit, and 29 genera of feed crop. A percentage of any commercial profit arising from the use of genetic resources made available by a developing country is returned to that developing country, etc. through the FAO.

"Genetic resources" as covered by the Treaty means material to which the intellectual property rights have expired. Most major crops are covered, but soybeans are excluded because the People's Republic of China, which has not acceded to the Treaty, owns the genetic resources for many varieties.

Under the Convention on Biological Diversity, which came into effect in 1993, the use and supply of genetic resources has been discussed between the two countries immediately concerned. Under the new Treaty, procedures and negotiations for the use of genetic resources will be discussed under common rules, and will consequently be simplified.

 [Return]

G10 Ministerial Conference Calls for Separate Rules on Sensitive Products

With the end of July deadline for agreement on a framework for the WTO agriculture negotiations approaching, the G10 group of net importers of food, which includes Japan, held a ministerial conference at the WTO headquarters in Geneva on July 5, and issued a joint statement on their approach to the negotiations. The ministers proposed the creation of a rule known as a "flexibility box" that would allow for a lesser reduction of tariffs on sensitive products. They also expressed their opposition to tariff capping, which would substantially reduce tariffs, bringing them down to a given maximum rate, and to the mandatory expansion of quotas for the importation of products at low tariff rates, such as Japan's minimum access quota for rice imports.

Ministers from 10 countries, including Japan (represented by Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Yoshiyuki Kamei), Switzerland and Korea, attended the conference.

The joint statement emphasized that the coexistence of diverse agricultural models requires that non-trade concerns such as food security and safety be taken into account.

In the context of the framework for market access, one of the focal points of the negotiations, it proposes, with regard to sensitive products, (1) that the approach to tariff cuts should be one that offers sufficient flexibility (e.g. the Uruguay Round formula, which allows for a different reduction for each product) and allows the reduction to be kept to a minimum, (2) that it should be possible to designate an adequate number of products as sensitive, and (3) that member countries should be free to choose sensitive products.

For the remaining non-sensitive products, the statement rejects the Swiss formula, which involves steeper cuts reducing tariffs to below a given level, but accepts the possibility of exploring a "tiered approach" under which the higher the initial tariff, the steeper the cut.

With regard to low-tariff import quotas, the statement proposes that a uniform expansion should not be mandatory but that quotas should be discussed separately for each product.

At the press conference following the ministerial conference, Mr. Kamei suggested that the number of sensitive products to be excluded from the scope of steep tariff cuts would vary according to the particular tariff reduction formula adopted, but should be around "30% of all products to which tariffs apply".

On July 6, Mr. Kamei had talks with Tim Groser, chair of the WTO Agricultural Negotiating Committee. Mr. Kamei said that the reduction of tariffs on sensitive products for the developed nations, such as rice for Japan, "should be based on a flexible formula (separate from that applied to other products)", and asked Mr. Groser to exclude such products from the scope of steep tariff cuts.

Mr. Groser indicated a readiness to take account of sensitive products, but also said he recognized that, to some extent, the reduction of border measures such as tariffs must also apply to sensitive products, suggesting that the "flexible" approach would need to be elaborated in concrete terms, within a degree of discipline.

 [Return]

Rise in Imports of Feeder Calves from Australia

The rise in the domestic price of calves has led to an ongoing rise in imports of feeder calves from Australia. Moreover, most of these calves are F1 black Wagyu [Japanese cattle] crossbreeds. Australian breeders are even providing an individual "written oath" for each animal, certifying that it is a black Wagyu-Aberdeen Angus crossbreed.

According to the Animal Quarantine Service, a total of 21,977 feeder calves were imported in 2003, 59% up on the 8,159 calves imported in 2002, and some 6,258 calves have been imported in the first five months of 2004. The continued high price of feeder calves in Japan means that cattle feeders are having to rely on imports.

Almost all imported feeder calves come from Australia. In 2003, Australian calves accounted for 95% of the total. The calves are aged 9-11 months and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries believes that "most are probably black Wagyu-Aberdeen Angus crossbreeds".

Between the 1970s and the 1990s, around 220 black Wagyu cattle were exported and, in the late 1990s, approximately 13,000 vials of frozen semen were taken to the United States. These have since found their way to Australia and are being used to breed calves.

Importers claim that Australian crossbreed feeder calves are cheaper than domestic crossbreeds and that their meat is in no way inferior. An increasing number of farms, especially large-scale fattening concerns, are interested in purchasing Australian calves.

The fattened cattle are marketed as domestically raised crossbreeds. The current legislation allows cattle raised in Japan for three months or longer to be shipped as domestically raised.

One importer says that the imported calves include a number of pure Wagyu animals, although these account for less than 10% of the total. Apparently, some farms even specify the pedigree of the sire and dam when purchasing feeder calves from Australian breeders.

In view of the growing demand overseas for calves with Wagyu genes, the Wagyu Registry Association warns that domestic producers must work to improve the quality of their stock.

 [Return]

Tokyo Retail Food Prices Moving Closer to International Average

The results of a survey released by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) on July 12 show that, little by little, the retail price of food in Japan is moving closer to the international average. The survey compares the retail prices of food in five major cities around the world — Tokyo, Paris, Geneva, Singapore, New York, and London — in November 2003. The price gap between Tokyo and Geneva (where food is more expensive than in Tokyo) has widened by 14 points, while the price gaps between Tokyo and New York, London and Paris have narrowed by between 3 and 10 points.

The survey compares the prices of a basket of 29 items commonly sold in all five cities, such as pork, cabbages and tomatoes. Taking the price of the 29 common items in Tokyo as 100, the price index was 122 in Geneva (up from 108 in 2002), 92 in New York (up from 89 in 2002), 84 in London (up from 77 in 2002), 89 in Paris (up from 79 in 2002) and 57 in Singapore (down from 66 in 2002). Among other factors, MAFF ascribes the narrowing of the price gap with New York, London and Paris to the sharp fall in the price of fresh foods in Tokyo as compared with the average year, and to a rise in the price of food in some parts of Europe due to record summer temperatures.

The price of a basket of 42 items including Japanese foods such as umeboshi [pickled plums] and natto [fermented soybeans] was virtually the same in New York as in Tokyo, but the cost of a Japanese dietary lifestyle was higher in all three European cities than in Tokyo.

 [Return]

Early Diagnostic Method for Citrus Greening Disease Developed

The National Agricultural Research Center for the Kyushu-Okinawa Region (KONARC) has developed a method that allows early diagnosis of citrus greening disease (CG), a problem in the Amami Islands, part of Kagoshima Prefecture, and in Okinawa. The new method offers a time saving of about 3 hours on the diagnostic process, which until now has taken more than 5 hours. It is also highly efficient in detecting the disease and requires no special equipment. Once staff at experimental stations and plant protection stations have been trained, the method will be developed on a commercial basis.

CG is a serious disease that weakens citrus trees and, in its final stages, causes them to wither. It is caused by a specific bacterium spread by the citrus psyllid Diaphorina citri.

The Okinawa and Kagoshima prefectural governments and the central government collect leaves from trees in orchards and gardens at regular intervals and if infection is confirmed, the trees are felled and incinerated. The diagnostic work is done by the laboratories of prefectural experimental stations and plant protection stations, and a method for early diagnosis has been needed for some time.

The new method is based on a DNA testing technique known as LAMP (loop-mediated isothermal amplification). First, DNA is extracted from citrus leaves, as in the conventional PCR (polymerase chain reaction) method. The DNA is then amplified and the sample is examined for infection. With LAMP, the DNA can be amplified very rapidly and at a specified temperature, cutting the time required for the amplification process from 4 hours to 1 hour.

The only equipment required is a device to keep samples at room temperature while waiting for the reaction to be complete, and the kind of costly equipment used in agricultural experimental stations is unnecessary. The method is highly sensitive, being capable of detecting infection when the sample contains fewer than 100 bacteria, whereas the conventional PCR method requires a bacteria count of at least 1000.

 [Return]

Suntory Develops World's First Blue Rose

Osaka-based Suntory Limited announced on June 30 that it has developed the world's first true blue rose in conjunction with Australian bio venture Florigene Pty., Ltd. The two companies used recombinant DNA technology to implant the gene responsible for the synthesis of "delphinidin", the blue pigment found in pansies, into a rose. As the rose was created using recombinant DNA technology, it cannot yet be placed outdoors and is being shown in a glass case.

As natural roses do not have a gene that produces blue pigment, it was previously thought impossible to breed a true blue rose. Most apparently blue roses grown to date have been created by a combination of selection from varieties with red or orange pigmentation and cultivation techniques that make them look blue.

Suntory began work on developing the blue rose in 1990 and has succeeded after nearly 15 years. It expects commercial development to take another 2 1/2-3 years.

 [Return]

MAFF and MHLW to Encourage Display of Allergy Warnings on Bananas

The joint council of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) responsible for reviewing the allergic food labeling system has decided to add bananas to the list of foods on which it will encourage the display of allergy warnings. The display of warnings may be encouraged from as early as autumn this year.

The joint council was considering whether or not to make bananas and sesame foods on which the display of allergy warnings is encouraged after national surveys of food allergies and other research found a high reported incidence of their triggering anaphylactic shock. The council decided to wait for the results of further research on sesame, as the number of reported cases of anaphylactic shock varied between surveys, along with cocoa, melon and bluefin tuna, for which there are also many reported cases of anaphylactic shock.

The Food Sanitation Law currently requires the display of allergy warnings on 5 allergic foods — eggs, wheat, buckwheat, milk, and peanuts — and encourages the display of warnings on a further 19 foods, including prawns, chicken and soybeans.

 [Return]

Wireless IC Tags Will Help Reduce Distribution Costs

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) has embarked on the development of a system using wireless IC tags (electronic tags) to help increase the efficiency of distribution of agricultural products. The aim is to develop an efficient system through the use of wireless IC tags in the inspection, shipment division and inventory control of fresh foods.

Until now, the use of wireless IC tags has centered on traceability systems designed to promote food safety. This time, they will be used to reduce distribution costs.

MAFF has allocated 22 million yen under its budget for this fiscal year to the development of new technology to enhance the efficiency of distribution control. The project will be carried out by the Organization of Food Marketing Structure Improvement ("Food Distribution Organization") which will establish a Development Study Group made up of academic experts and food distributors, to determine the range of distribution data that must be covered and create rules for shipment division and inspection procedures.

A spokesman for the Food Distribution Organization said, "The cooperation of producers is essential for the successful introduction of wireless IC tags into the distribution of agricultural products. We aim to build a system that offers benefits to producers, too."

[Return]

Gender Equality: The Need for Farming Villages to Make Faster Progress

The recently published FY 2004 Annual Report on the State of the Formation of a Gender Equal Society finds that although steady headway is being made in the creation and improvement of legislation and systems, progress towards a gender equal society is, in reality, slow. With regard to the participation of women in the process of policy decision-making in farming, mountain and fishing villages, the Report finds that the number of both women on the agricultural committees that authorize the transfer of farm land rights and women among the regular members and elected board directors of JA cooperatives are at a low level and growing only slowly, as is the case for women in rural communities at large. However, the Report gives credit where it is due, finding that participation by women in agricultural committees is "growing steadily", and that the number of women among regular members and elected board directors of JA cooperatives "has exhibited a rising trend in recent years". As denoted by the fact that the Report devotes a whole chapter to the subject, gender equality in farming, mountain and fishing villages will be a key factor in boosting overall nationwide gender equality. These villages need to make faster progress towards gender equality, while consolidating the "steady growth" and "rising trends".

In Japan, the creation of legislation and systems relating to the participation of women in society was launched in 1975, International Women's Year. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women was drawn up, and Japan acceded. Since then, Japan has acquired a range of legislation, including a Basic Law for a Gender-Equal Society and an Equal Employment Opportunity Law. In the same spirit, the Basic Law on Food Agriculture and Rural Areas proposed that women working in agriculture should be encouraged to participate in society. Article 26 states that "In consideration of the importance of securing opportunities for both men and women to participate in all kinds of social activities as equal members of society, the State shall promote the creation of an environment in which women's roles in farming operations are fairly assessed and women can be provided with opportunities to become involved in farm management and other relevant activities on a voluntary basis."

In practice, as of FY 2002, there were only 2,187 or 3.76% of all members of agricultural committees were women, and the agricultural committee organization's goal of having at least 2 women on every committee (approximately 7,000 women in all) is still a distant one. However, the number of women on agricultural committees has doubled over the past 2 years, and this has been hailed as "steady growth". The number of regular women members of JA cooperatives stands at 783,806, accounting for 15.22% of all members. There are 266 women directors of JA cooperatives, accounting for 1.02% of the total. These figures are well below the JA organization's targets of a 25% ratio of women among regular members and at least 2 women directors on the board of amalgamated primary cooperatives. Nevertheless, over the past 17 years, the number of women regular members has risen by approximately 210,000 and the number of women directors has increased by 277, and the Report describes this growth as a "rising trend".

The Report also summarizes progress at the village level in FY 2003 in a chapter entitled "Achieving Gender Equality in Agricultural, Forestry and Fishing Villages". It reports on a number of policy measures implemented during the year with a view to ensuring proper recognition of the contribution of women to farming, forestry and fishing village society; promoting the participation of women in policy decision-making processes, such as the drawing up of targets for participation at the municipal level; enhancing the economic status of women by providing support to women establishing business enterprises; and creating favorable living and working conditions for women, etc.

Farming, mountain and fishing villages are certainly making progress in encouraging the participation and raising the status of women in society, but, as is generally true throughout Japan, the rate of progress is still slow. The introduction to the Report states that, "only by promoting gender equality can we ensure a bright future for Japan, both socially and economically," and the key to ensuring the vitality of farming, mountain and fishing villages, as seen in the success of enterprises established by women, is gender equality. These villages need to make faster progress on gender equality and step up the pace of reform and revitalization. An expansion of related policy measures will be essential if this end is to be achieved.

(from an editorial in the June 29, 2004  issue of the Nihon Nogyo Shimbun)

[Return]