Digital Agriculture Strategy

 Food is indispensable for the survival of the domestic population of 120 million. Domestic agriculture plays an important role in its stable supply. Japan's agriculture, which accounts for 0.8% of GDP and employs 1.36 million people, faces various challenges. On the other hand, the movement toward the realization of new agriculture, including efforts to solve it and contribute to the achievement of SDGs goals, may become a nursery for new businesses. It featured recent trends, focusing on agricultural-related statistical data and strategies created by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries.

It can be said that the biggest challenge in the domestic agricultural field is the decrease in the number of bearers and the aging of the population. According to the "Statistics on Agricultural Labor Force" based on the Agriculture and Forestry Census, the number of "core agricultural workers" (people who are mainly engaged in self-employed agriculture as work) in 2015 was 1.353 million in 2020. Reduced to people. The average age has risen from 67.1 to 67.8, and the population is aging. The number of new farmers is 50,000 to 60,000 every year, but it has not increased significantly.

In other words, it is necessary to manage a large amount of cultivated land with a small amount of manpower and increase the yield more than it is now.

This will be a compass for those involved in advancing digital transformation. Amid the aging of farmers and labor shortages, we utilize digital technology to carry out highly efficient farming, capture consumer needs with data, and produce agricultural products and foods in a way that consumers can realize their value. We will promote the transformation to "FaaS: Farming as a Service" that we can provide.

The aim is to realize ultra-efficient large-scale production even with a small number of people. In Hokkaido, where the area of ​​cultivated land is large, there are areas where information systems have been introduced and farming using data has begun (→ P.28), but this will be further accelerated and strengthened. Produces high value-added agricultural products tailored to the land, enabling stable production of high-quality crops even for elderly and new farmers, enabling food production and supply that flexibly responds to diverse consumer needs. The DX concept also exemplifies the goal of making it available for sale.

Agriculture is highly dependent on climate. Japanese farmers have been suffering from cold damage and drought for a long time, but due to the effects of climate change, the damage caused by high-temperature damage and flood damage is increasing. The average temperature in Japan is rising at a rate of 1.26 degrees per 100 years, and the average annual temperature in 2020 was the highest since 1898 when statistics were started. Furthermore, for the past 10 years, flood damage caused by typhoons and heavy rains has caused damage such as flooding of agricultural land and destruction of institutional gardening houses almost every year. These measures include switching to high-temperature resistant varieties and strengthening embankments for hydraulic control.

The relationship between the climate change that underlies these problems and the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries is also drawing attention. Japan declared "2050 Carbon Neutral" in October 2020. Its basic stance is to view global warming as an "opportunity for growth" rather than constraints and costs. The food, agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industry is counted as one of the "expected industries" in 14 fields in the "Green Growth Strategy for 2050 Carbon Neutral" announced in December 2020. The strategy aims to eliminate fossil fuel-derived CO 2 in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries industries by 2050.

According to the government's global warming countermeasure plan, the emission reduction target for FY2030 will be reduced by 26% compared to FY2013, and in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sector, it will be reduced by 2.8%. As emission reduction measures, the introduction of energy-saving facilities and gardening equipment, energy saving of agricultural machinery and fishing boats, and reduction of nitrous oxide by optimizing fertilization have been proposed. As a sink measure, it is expected that agricultural land will contribute as a place to store CO 2.

The EU and the United States have announced strategies aimed at transforming into sustainable agriculture in 2020. Japan also intends to aim for a model of a sustainable food system in the Asian monsoon region. We will actively participate in international rule-making, including the United Nations Food System Summit to be held in September 2021.

The vulnerabilities in the food supply chain highlighted by the Corona disaster are also challenges that must be overcome by innovation. The establishment of a lean processing/distribution system by rationalizing/optimizing processing/distribution is mentioned as a concrete initiative in the “Green Food System Strategy”. Food mileage associated with food processing can be reduced by allowing processing near the production area. The concept of concrete measures to optimize food production and consumption as a whole is important for bringing about a sustainable society.