Retirees, youths try to patch up Japan's graying farms

Jul 15, 2008, 15:47 GMT

Tokyo - The toughest obstacle Japan's agricultural sector faces these days is ageing. The nation's farmers are graying fast.

Industry analysts say that the cause of Japan's shrinking farming population is the family-oriented operation.

Having seen parents work on their hands and knees smeared with dirt, the younger generation has left no successor but a drying land for bigger, better and cleaner success in the nation's metropolis.

Ageing farmers without any family successors are passing their lands on to their neighbours in their 40s and 50s, while farm lands are being taken over by weeds.

In 10 years, the number of Japan's 3.12 million farmers aged 65 and up increased from 18 per cent in 1997 to more than 60 per cent in 2007, according to the farm ministry.

Now the ageing farmers are trying to woo younger ones from within and outside of Japan to pass on the know-how and the joy of growing vegetables and rice by offering training programmes, said Akira Suno of Japan Agricultural Cooperation Association.

The training system seems to catch on, thanks to the trend of new lifestyle after retirement and slow life movement.

Some municipalities and companies have successfully attracted former corporate soldiers to find more relaxing agricultural life after retirement in rural Japan.

While the number of family successors decline, that of the newly employed in the farm business has increased 29 per cent from 1995 to 2005, to 117,000 people, the government reports said.

Making Co, for instance, developed a region in central Ibaraki province just outside of Tokyo with big houses, elderly care support system, grocery delivery and cultural activity clubs for more than 1,000 retired couples who moved to the neighbourhood.

The newcomers can receive training from local agricultural experts to pursue sustainable living.

But government statistics shows that the number of newly registered farmers remains low in the age bracket of 40 years or younger, while more than half are 60 years old and up due to the baby boomers retiring en masse the past few years.

Although better than none, the retirement group would only offer a temporary bandage to sustainability and longevity of Japan's agriculture, a Japan Agricultural Co-operatives Chiba branch official said.

Muchacha-en farm in western Japan of Ehime province targets young agricultural enthusiasts from within Japan and other Asian nations.

Seeking a slower-paced life and attracted by the idea of self-sufficiency, some young Japanese come knocking at Muchacha-en's door.

After a year of training, the pupils graduate to pursue their own business or stay at Muchacha-en to train incoming apprentices.

The objectives are clear and the system is sufficient, but still many fail at the attempt, Hiroshi Utsunomiya of Muchacha-en said.

'They realize they can't make as much money as they expected or the farmer's life is not as glorious as they once imagined,' Utsunomiya said.

For those who dream of growing various kinds of vegetables, the farm is not good enough because the climate is best suited for citrus fruit. In addition, the organic produce often looks less appealing to Japanese consumers who prefer uniformly shaped, clean ones, and that dents their income, Utsunomiya said.

In the past decade, only 10 have graduated from the ranch to becoming a professional farmer.

'I can understand how especially young people want to leave for bigger cities when produce prices keep going down,' he said. 'But we are trying to teach our apprentices that agriculture rewards them with feeling of accomplishment.'

The ranch has established a network of clientele in the region, promoting their products as organic and branding the fruit with Muchacha-en label.

The interns slowly learn to appreciate their efforts being paid off.

'Slow and steady is the key to winning this battle,' Utsunomiya said. 'It helps build trust in trainees as well as consumers. As long as you reassure safety and security of your products, they would value our labour.'