Characteristics of Japanese agriculture and agriculture overseas

While large-scale agriculture is the norm overseas, Japan has a small amount of farmland and is also facing issues such as a declining birthrate and aging population. Here we will compare the characteristics of agriculture in Japan and overseas.

Japanese Agriculture

One of the characteristics of agriculture in Japan is the small amount of farmland. Japan has a large area of forests, a small area of flat land, and a high population density, so it is not possible to allocate a large area to farmland.

Another characteristic of agriculture in Japan is the aging of agricultural workers. Many agricultural workers are over 65 years old, making it difficult for young people to get involved in the industry. Japan's food self-sufficiency rate is also 40% overall and 30% for grains, and the country relies heavily on imports.

Agriculture around the world

This time, we will look at the characteristics of agriculture around the world and compare it with Japan using the example of the agricultural powerhouse, the United States.

American agriculture is known as "big farming" and is characterized by the use of large machinery to manage large areas with a small number of people.This helps to reduce labor costs and therefore costs.
Therefore, American-grown agricultural products can be purchased at low prices. Besides America, large-scale agriculture is also carried out in Europe.

Overseas expansion of agriculture

In recent years, with the global boom in Japanese food and other factors as a tailwind, Japan's agricultural policy is also placing emphasis on overseas markets, and is promoting the overseas expansion of its agricultural business.
Below is a description of the current state of agricultural exports and how to expand overseas.

Current status of agricultural exports

In 2016, agricultural exports reached a record high of 459.3 billion yen, the fourth consecutive year of record high. The boom in Japanese food is accelerating around the world, and Japanese food is seen as safe and delicious.
Therefore, despite its high price, it is extremely popular among the wealthy as a high-added-value crop.
The Japanese government also promotes and supports the export of agricultural products.

How to expand overseas

There are two main ways to expand your agricultural business overseas.

The first is exporting agricultural products produced in Japan. When exporting, there are hurdles to overcome, such as securing transportation methods, quarantine and customs clearance, and securing local distribution routes. It is common for a trading company with ample experience in overseas exports to act as an intermediary in exporting agricultural products.

The second method is to produce agricultural products locally and sell them locally or to Japan. When it is difficult to export from Japan due to various regulations, producing locally allows you to produce at a lower cost than in Japan. However, this method of overseas expansion comes with difficulties such as acquiring farmland, legal regulations on employee employment, and securing sales routes.

If you want to start exporting, choose "DigiTrad"

This time, we asked, "What are the differences between Japanese agriculture and agriculture overseas?"

STANDAGE uses its own trade cloud service to provide "Digitrad", a service that can "completely" handle trade for small and medium-sized enterprises. "Digitrad" allows you to develop overseas sales channels at low cost thanks to the application of IT introduction subsidies. We can also handle small-scale, low-value trade and domestic purchases that cannot be done by large trading companies, so please feel free to contact us.

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