Sustainability and Small farms in Japan



Japan is a nation of small farmers, yet the traditional farming is very much marginalized. While it's really difficult to find those farms still engaging in the traditional style, there is new trend ,although very small, in more environmental farming approach.



I visited tea farms and shitake mushroom farms in mountains of Kyushu where a few farmers still engage in traditional farming although they are suffering very much from competition against conventional farming and foreign import.

One good news. There are a lot of farmers' coop type market popping up all over Japan, especially in rural Japan. I traveled long distance mostly relying on local produce and farm style meals. Coming from U.S., I thought most ingredients like rice and beans, potatoes, vegetables, etc are coming from a large farms in remote locations, but most ingredients if not all were actually produced in the same town.

Sustainability in Japan

In the U.S. I hear many people talking about sustainability, but in Japan I don't hear very much. I asked one time at an Inn I was staying if there foods were produced locally. They looked puzzled almost telling me why do you ask that kind of questions. In fact, I later found out that they produced everything that was on the table. It's not because this is the modern trend like how it is in U.S. where you can go to a farmers market and buy some local produce, but it's just how many of them live in the rural area of Japan.
I can't say this is all true in urban area of Japan, and I was lucky to witness the rural Japan where security of foods is important.

Also, much of their farming is based on local ingredients. How farming and lifestyle evolved over hundreds of years in the rural Japan, they had all they needed and adapted to grow rice, potatoes, vegetables, small animals and many mountain herbs.


Traditional farming in small villages are disappearing

Even though we can still observe this sustainable practice happening, there is a big change in younger generations leaving these rural villages to get a better job and more cash in big cities. Tradition is disappearing rapidly as older people are too old to grow their own foods and for the community.

Cash crops have also replaced traditional diversified production. Farmers are switching their gear to grow crops of high value rather than for local consumption. This creates more sustainability problems. Long distance trucking and unnatural preservation becomes common place.

To further reinstate this, there are big shopping malls appearing all over Japan. It appears that Japan is also following the unsustainable fate of the U.S.A.

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