Japanese Media: Japan Develops Agricultural Decarbonization Strategy

Japan's "Mainichi Shimbun" published an article titled "Agricultural Decarbonization" on May 14 by Taiki Asakawa. The full text is excerpted as follows:

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan formulated a medium- and long-term strategy and submitted it to the Liberal Democratic Party’s Agriculture and Forestry Committee on the 11th local time. The goal of this strategy is to achieve zero carbon dioxide emissions in the fields of agriculture, forestry and aquaculture by 2050, and to strengthen the promotion of pesticides and fertilizers that have a small environmental load. This strategy also states that in order to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers, organic agriculture will be expanded to 25% of all agricultural land by 2050. However, there is a big gap between the goal and the status quo. To achieve the goal, technological innovation in the agricultural field and the collaboration of producers are indispensable.

Focusing on decarbonization, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga immediately put forward the goal of "achieving net zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050" immediately after taking office, and the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors are also required to strengthen their response. On the same day, the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources put forward the goal of achieving zero carbon dioxide emissions and expanding the area of organic agriculture in 2050. In addition, it also set numerical targets such as reducing the use of chemical pesticides by 50% and reducing the use of chemical fertilizers by 30%.

Specifically, the above strategy stipulates that by 2050, plastic greenhouses and other gardening facilities will be completely converted to facilities that do not use fossil fuels. At present, most plastic greenhouses still use petroleum as fuel, and in the future, it is necessary to seek the transition to recycling agriculture that uses industrial waste heat.

The above-mentioned strategy also proposes to realize the electrification technology for agricultural machinery and fishing boats by 2040. The Yoshihide Suga government announced in April that it "will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 46% in 2030 compared to 2013". According to this goal, the above strategy records 16 tasks to be committed during this period.

The reason for this ambitious goal is that Japan intends to compete with European and American countries that are taking the lead in decarbonization. In May 2020, the European Union issued a strategy aimed at realizing a sustainable food production system, proposing to expand the area of organic agriculture to more than 25% of all agricultural land by 2030, reduce the use of chemical pesticides by 50%, and reduce food waste per capita. Targets such as reducing by 50% indicate that it intends to realize the international standardization of EU standards.

In addition, US President Biden expressed in January this year that he hoped that the United States would take the lead in achieving zero emissions of greenhouse gases in the agricultural sector before other countries. If these values become international standards, the Japanese agricultural and water industry, which seeks to expand exports, may fall behind in international competition. According to officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Water, "Japan also needs to take countermeasures to keep up with the trend of the world."

However, it is not easy to achieve the goal. The humid climate in Asia, including Japan, makes pests and diseases prone to occur, and to some extent has to rely on pesticides. The Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources has formulated a plan to develop low-environmental risk agriculture and completely phase out traditional chemical pesticides by 2040, but this cannot be guaranteed.

To achieve the goal, it is inseparable from the cooperation of producers and consumers. For example, if consumers do not generally actively buy vegetables and fruits produced through organic agriculture, it will be difficult for farmers as producers to develop organic agriculture. At the meeting of the Liberal Democratic Party’s Agriculture and Forestry Committee held on the 11th, some people also commented, “For farmers who are making efforts in accordance with the Ministry of Agriculture and Water’s medium and long-term strategy, a new certification system should be developed to provide support.” An official from the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources said that some farmers said they were "difficult to understand" and "not optimistic" about the above strategy, but without everyone's efforts, the goal would be impossible to achieve.