Agricultural Protectionism in Japan

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Agricultural Protectionism in Japan refers to the protection of farmers and the agricultural sector in Japan from international competition. The country has limited land to use for farming and until recent years, has been a protectionist country regarding agriculture. Farming in Japan has experienced economic inefficiency but has not dissuaded some Japanese from choosing to become either full or part-time farmers. In 2012 around 4% of the total work force in Japan was categorized as "agricultural workers", which was much higher than the United States (2.6%), England (1.5%) and Germany (2.8%). In order to support farming the Japanese government issued farmers massive grants. Due to increasing technology farming has increased in efficiency to where large rice fields can be harvested in about three days. [1]

Japan Island country in East Asia

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies off the eastern coast of the Asian continent and stretches from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and the Philippine Sea in the south.

Agriculture Cultivation of plants and animals to provide useful products

Agriculture is the science and art of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to live in cities. The history of agriculture began thousands of years ago. After gathering wild grains beginning at least 105,000 years ago, nascent farmers began to plant them around 11,500 years ago. Pigs, sheep and cattle were domesticated over 10,000 years ago. Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11 regions of the world. Industrial agriculture based on large-scale monoculture in the twentieth century came to dominate agricultural output, though about 2 billion people still depended on subsistence agriculture into the twenty-first.

Farmer person that works in agriculture

A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer might own the farmed land or might work as a laborer on land owned by others, but in advanced economies, a farmer is usually a farm owner, while employees of the farm are known as farm workers, or farmhands. However, in the not so distant past, a farmer was a person who promotes or improves the growth of by labor and attention, land or crops or raises animals.

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Japanese farms have alsoreceived support from the country's consumers, who are more likely to purchase domestically produced goods regardless of price, compared with goods produced in other countries. [2]

Politician influence

Farmers have received much political support in Japan. According to researchers such as Yusaku Horiuchi and Jun Saito, there are several possible reasons for this. One was that until the 1994 electoral reform, farmers were able to provide more organized political support such as votes, as consumers are more diffused and unorganized, making it difficult to collectively act and lobby. [3] After the reform this became more difficult to accomplish and after the Japan Agricultural Cooperatives' decentralization reform in 2015 it became more difficult for farmers. [4] [5] [6]

Japan Agricultural Cooperatives, also known as JA or Nōkyō (農協), refers to the 694 regional co-ops in Japan that supply members with input for production, undertake packaging, transportation, and marketing of agricultural products, and provide financial services. As of 2012, there are 4.6 million official members and 5.4 million associate members in JA. While “JA” refers to co-ops that operate in respective municipalities, the “JA group” includes administrative bodies that supervise regional co-ops across several prefectures, run wholesale business in food products and production inputs across municipal and prefectural borders (Zen-Noh), manage credit unions, offer insurance, and a national headquarters that controls the entire group and manages government relations. “JA” and “JA group” are often used interchangeably.

Another reason was that two of the biggest political parties of Japan made an effort to push for agricultural protectionism in Japan. The Liberal Democratic Party has been a pro-rural party since its establishment and the Democratic Party of Japan has also sought to get rural votes by advocating for income compensation for farmers. [3] Two party competition & political mobilization around 2008 contributed to the government’s increased effort to raise citizens’ concerns for food self-sufficiency issue. [2]    

Political parties appeared in Japan after the Meiji Restoration, and gradually increased in importance after the promulgation of the Meiji Constitution and the creation of the Diet of Japan. During the Taishō period, parliamentary democracy based on party politics temporarily succeeded in Japan, but in the 1930s the political parties were eclipsed by the military, and were dissolved in the 1940s during World War II

Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) Japanese political party

The Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, frequently abbreviated to LDP or Jimintō (自民党), is a conservative political party in Japan.

Democratic Party of Japan Political party in Japan

The Democratic Party of Japan was a centrist political party in Japan from 1998 to 2016.

Food safety concerns

Other than politician influence on food protectionism, observers of Japan have thought that Japanese consumers seem to be willing to support the high price because of issues related with food safety as well. Possible disease and poison in import food made many Japanese worrisome and turned to domestic produced goods only. In 2001, China exported vegetables with pesticide residues to Japan. In 2004, bird flu was found in import from Thailand, Indonesia, etc. In 2008, dumplings imported from China were found to be poisoned. There were cases of unsafe food found in Japan as well. Mad-cow disease was found in Japanese beef in 2001. To best eliminate its negative effect, politicians quickly organized gathering to devour beef and invited mass media and ate beef in front of TV cameras to demonstrate its safety. [7]

Food safety scientific discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent foodborne illness

Food safety is used as a scientific discipline describing handle, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent food-borne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a similar illnesses resulting from the ingestion of a common food is known as a food-borne disease outbreak. This includes a number of routines that should be followed to avoid potential health hazards. In this way food safety often overlaps with food defense to prevent harm to consumers. The tracks within this line of thought are safety between industry and the market and then between the market and the consumer. In considering industry to market practices, food safety considerations include the origins of food including the practices relating to food labeling, food hygiene, food additives and pesticide residues, as well as policies on biotechnology and food and guidelines for the management of governmental import and export inspection and certification systems for foods. In considering market to consumer practices, the usual thought is that food ought to be safe in the market and the concern is safe delivery and preparation of the food for the consumer.

China Country in East Asia

China, officially the People's Republic of China, is a country in East Asia and the world's most populous country, with a population of around 1.404 billion in 2017. Covering approximately 9,600,000 square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third or fourth largest country by total area. Governed by the Communist Party of China, the state exercises jurisdiction over 22 provinces, five autonomous regions, four direct-controlled municipalities, and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau.

Thailand Constitutional monarchy in Southeast Asia

Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and formerly known as Siam, is a country at the centre of the Southeast Asian Indochinese peninsula composed of 76 provinces. At 513,120 km2 (198,120 sq mi) and over 68 million people, Thailand is the world's 50th-largest country by total area and the 21st-most-populous country. The capital and largest city is Bangkok, a special administrative area. Thailand is bordered to the north by Myanmar and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and the southern extremity of Myanmar. Its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea to the southwest. It is a unitary state. Although nominally the country is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, the most recent coup, in 2014, established a de facto military dictatorship under a junta.

Government policies and other institutions

The LDP & Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery’s created a program called Food Action Nippon Program ("FAN"). The slogan for the program was "Everybody, let's increase the Food Self-Sufficiency Ratio!". [8] It was aimed to educated consumers about Japan's low food self-sufficiency ratio and to encourage domestic consumption. In 2005, "Food Education" legislation was created to encourage using locally-grown food for public school lunches. Through this legislation, children were taught about local agriculture and food traditions and local farmers were benefited as well. [9]

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan) agriculture ministry of Japan

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries a cabinet level ministry in the government of Japan responsible for oversight of the agriculture, forestry and fishing industries. Its acronym is MAFF. The current Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries is Takamori Yoshikawa.

Shift from food protectionism

Due to the aging of Japan and the decrease of couples having children, a large percent of the Japanese population is over the age of 65. Kazuhito Yamashita has stated that this has resulted in an increase of government debt and makes agricultural protectionism no longer affordable. Japan, along with 10 other countries, negotiated the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement and member countries signed the agreement in 2016. The negotiation was aimed to eliminate tariffs on all products, without exceptions, within ten years from the conclusion. Yamashita also states that trade liberalization is beneficial, as it lowers the food price and helps the government get rid of excessive subsidization of farmers. [10]

Related Research Articles

A tariff is a tax on imports or exports between sovereign states. It is a form of regulation of foreign trade and a policy that taxes foreign products to encourage or safeguard domestic industry. Traditionally, states have used them as a source of income. Now, they are among the most widely used instruments of protectionism, along with import and export quotas.

Free trade Absence of government restriction on international trade

Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports; it can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold liberal economic positions while economically left-wing and nationalist political parties generally support protectionism, the opposite of free trade.

Import substitution industrialization trade and economic policy

Import substitution industrialization (ISI) is a trade and economic policy which advocates replacing foreign imports with domestic production. ISI is based on the premise that a country should attempt to reduce its foreign dependency through the local production of industrialized products. The term primarily refers to 20th-century development economics policies, although it has been advocated since the 18th century by economists such as Friedrich List and Alexander Hamilton.

Common Agricultural Policy

The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is the agricultural policy of the European Union. It implements a system of agricultural subsidies and other programmes. It was introduced in 1962 and has undergone several changes since then to reduce the cost and to also consider rural development in its aims. It has been criticised on the grounds of its cost, and its environmental and humanitarian impacts.

A subsidy or government incentive is a form of financial aid or support extended to an economic sector generally with the aim of promoting economic and social policy. Although commonly extended from government, the term subsidy can relate to any type of support – for example from NGOs or as implicit subsidies. Subsidies come in various forms including: direct and indirect.

Protectionism Economic policy of restraining trade between states through government regulations

Protectionism is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. Proponents claim that protectionist policies shield the producers, businesses, and workers of the import-competing sector in the country from foreign competitors. However, they also reduce trade and adversely affect consumers in general, and harm the producers and workers in export sectors, both in the country implementing protectionist policies and in the countries protected against.

Agricultural policy laws relating to domestic agriculture and imports of foreign agricultural products

Agricultural policy describes a set of laws relating to domestic agriculture and imports of foreign agricultural products. Governments usually implement agricultural policies with the goal of achieving a specific outcome in the domestic agricultural product markets. In relation to the foregoing, Akarowhe (2017) propounded that agricultural policies are pathways of improving the activities involve in cropping, livestock, forestry, processing and marketing of agricultural product. Agricultural policies are predetermined goals, objectives and pathway set by an individual or government for the purpose of achieving a specified outcome, for the benefit of the individual(s), society and the nations’ economy at large. Agricultural policies take into consideration the primary, secondary and tertiary processes in agricultural production. Outcomes can involve, for example, a guaranteed supply level, price stability, product quality, product selection, land use or employment.

An agricultural subsidy is a government incentive paid to agribusinesses, agricultural organizations and farms to supplement their income, manage the supply of agricultural commodities, and influence the cost and supply of such commodities. Examples of such commodities include: wheat, feed grains, cotton, milk, rice, peanuts, sugar, tobacco, oilseeds such as soybeans and meat products such as beef, pork, and lamb and mutton.

Agriculture, forestry, and fishing in Japan

Agriculture, farming, and fishing form the primary sector of industry of the Japanese economy together with the Japanese mining industry, but together they account for only 1.3% of gross national product. Only 20% of Japan's land is suitable for cultivation, and the agricultural economy is highly subsidized.

Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives

The Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives, in short JA-Zenchu (JA全中), is an independent administrative Japanese body within the Japan Agriculture (JA) Group which determines policy and administrates the group. Its legal status was originally a Recognised Corporate Body under the control of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), but since 2002 has become a Special Civilian Corporate Body.

Pastoral farming covers the systems of production of articles of bovine, type of animal breeding

Pastoral farming aimed at producing livestock, rather than growing crops. Examples include dairy farming, raising beef cattle, and raising sheep for wool. In contrast, arable farming concentrates on crops rather than livestock. Finally, Mixed farming incorporates livestock and crops on a single farm. Some mixed farmers grow crops purely as fodder for their livestock; some crop farmers grow fodder and sell and in some cases pastoralists. Pastoral farming is a non-nomadic form of pastoralism in which the livestock farmer has some form of ownership of the land used, giving the farmer more economic incentive to improve the land. Unlike other pastoral systems, pastoral farmers are sedentary and do not change locations in search for fresh resources. Rather, pastoral farmers adjust their pastures to fit the needs of their animals. Improvements include drainage, stock tanks, irrigation and sowing clover.

Agriculture in Iran

Roughly one-third of Iran's total surface area is suited for farmland, but because of poor soil and lack of adequate water distribution in many areas, most of it is not under cultivation. Only 12% of the total land area is under cultivation but less than one-third of the cultivated area is irrigated; the rest is devoted to dryland farming. Some 92 percent of agricultural products depend on water. The western and northwestern portions of the country have the most fertile soils. Iran's food security index stands at around 96 percent.

The Beef Hormone Dispute is one of the most intractable agricultural controversies since the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Agriculture in China Farming in China

Agriculture is a vital industry in China, employing over 300 million farmers. China ranks first in worldwide farm output, primarily producing rice, wheat, potatoes, tomato, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed and soybeans.

Agriculture in Taiwan

Agriculture in Taiwan is one of the main industries in Taiwan. It contributes to the food security, rural development and conservation of Taiwan. Around 24% of Taiwan's land is used for farming.

Rice production in Japan

Rice production in Japan is important to the food supply in Japan, with rice being a staple part of the Japanese diet. Most people in Japan see this food as a substantial part of their daily diet.

Agriculture in Austria

The share of agriculture in Austria in the Austrian economy declined steadily after World War II, agriculture continues to represent an important element of the economy because of its social and political significance. The Chamber of Agriculture remains on an equal level with the chambers of commerce and labor, although its members produce only a fraction of the GDP that industrial and commercial workers produce.

Consumers Union of Japan (日本消費者連盟) or CUJ was founded in 1969 by Takeuchi Naokazu. CUJ is certified as a non-profit organization by Japan's NPO legislation. With offices in Nishi-Waseda, Tokyo, CUJ publishes "Consumer Report" as a member newsletter, as well as an online service in Japanese.

The Catfish Dispute started in 2001, as a trade war between Vietnam and the United States' catfish producers. The main argument concerns the import volume of catfish from Vietnam which results in lower profits for U.S. catfish producers. In dealing with major losses in profit, the Catfish Farmers of America (CFA), presented a series of lawsuits to the U.S. Department of Commerce against frozen catfish from Vietnam.

References

  1. ↑ Montanez, Cathie (2014-04-07). "LDRD FY2013 Annual Report". doi:10.2172/1128897.Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  2. 1 2 Naoi, Megumi; Kume, Ikuo (October 2011). "Explaining Mass Support for Agricultural Protectionism: Evidence from a Survey Experiment During the Global Recession". International Organization. 65 (4): 771–795. doi:10.1017/S0020818311000221. ISSN   0020-8183.
  3. 1 2 Olson, Mancur. (1995). The logic of collective action : public goods and the theory of groups . Harvard University Press. ISBN   9780674537514. OCLC   847088245.
  4. ↑ Horiuchi, Yusaku; Saito, Jun (December 2010). "Cultivating Rice and Votes: The Institutional Origins of Agricultural Protectionism in Japan". Journal of East Asian Studies. 10 (3): 425–452. doi:10.1017/s1598240800003684. ISSN   1598-2408.
  5. ↑ Cox, Gary W. (1987). The Efficient Secret. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/cbo9780511571473. ISBN   9780511571473.
  6. ↑ Takada, Aya (February 9, 2015). "Japan's Farm Lobby Concedes to Abe's Agriculture Reform Plans". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2019-08-02.
  7. ↑ www.newscientist.com https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn6971-first-human-case-of-mad-cow-disease-in-japan/ . Retrieved 2019-08-02.Missing or empty |title= (help)
  8. ↑ "Food Action Nippon". Washoku Lovers. 2016-03-14. Retrieved 2019-08-02.
  9. ↑ http://www.gag.it, G. A. G. "Japan shows food education works - BCFN Foundation". www.barillacfn.com. Retrieved 2019-08-02.
  10. ↑ Yamashita, Kazuhito; (2015); Japanese Agriculture Trade Policy and Sustainable Development; Issue Paper No. 56; International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development, Geneva, Switzerland, www.ictsd.org.
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