Japanese Kids to Learn How to Farm on Abandoned Land

2009.08.05 Wed

Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan is working on a model project in which elementary and junior high school students in the prefecture will learn about farming on abandoned farmland for three years, from fiscal 2009 to 2011. The project is aimed at revitalizing unused fields and offering children the opportunity to learn about agriculture and gain dietary knowledge.

Adults in the community first help weed and till the fields to make them arable. Then the children come to experience farm work, from planting rice, potatoes, and vegetables to harvesting them. The project also provides dietary education activities, in which the children cook and eat local traditional dishes using the harvested crops along with local livestock products.

It is expected that more than one school or organization in each of 11 areas in the prefecture will participate in the project. Parties participating will receive a subsidy from the prefecture for one year. In fiscal 2009, the prefecture prepared a budget of 10 million yen (about U.S.$102,000), which includes the cost of supporting the business, such as sending farm advisers, providing dietary education, and office expenses.

In Japan, the ratio of abandoned farm area (abandoned farm area divided by the sum of managed and abandoned areas) basically remained relatively steady (between 2.7 and 2.9 percent) between 1975 and 1985. But since 1990, it has steadily increase, and in 2005 reached 9.7 percent, or 386,000 hectares, equivalent to 1.8 times the area of Tokyo. In Kumamoto Prefecture, the acreage of abandoned farmland increased by 4,256 hectares between fiscal 1995 and 2005, and the ratio of abandoned farmland area reached 11.9 percent in 2005. Thus the prefecture is hoping this project to draw public attention to the issue and encourage them to participate in reusing abandoned agricultural land.

Kumamoto Prefecture official website
http://www.pref.kumamoto.jp/foreign/

Posted: 2009/08/05 06:00:15 AM