Category Archives: Organic Agriculture/Food

G7 Meeting Action Day in Miyazaki

Civil Rights, Food, Food Security, Organic Agriculture/Food,

Action Day to Bring Citizens’ and Farmers’ Voices to the G7 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting
Date: April 23, 12:00-15:30
The G7 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting will be held in Miyazaki Prefecture on April 22-23. What will be discussed at the meeting, what are the necessary international cooperation and political decisions, and what is needed to promote policies to protect food sovereignty in Japan? The Japan Family Farmers Movement (Nouminren) calls for your participation in the action and study exchange meeting in Miyazaki on the 23rd to promote agroecology and shift to an agricultural policy that supports small-scale and family farming in the pursuit of a sustainable society.

Stop the Food and Agriculture Crisis: Action Day to bring the voices of citizens and farmers to the G7 Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting
Date: Sunday, April 23
Action details:
12:00-12:45: Standing action

Place: In front of Miyazaki Yamagata-ya (department store) 5 min. walk from West Exit of JR Miyazaki Station
Address: 3-4-12 Tachibanadori Higashi, Miyazaki-shi, Miyazaki

13:30-15:30 Learning and exchange session Combined with online
Main presenter: Seiko Uchida (Co-president of PARC)
Naoya Matsudaira (Member of the Smallholder Agricultural Society of Japan, Representative Director of AMNet)
Toshiro Hasegawa (President, Japan Family Farmers Movement)
　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Promoting Organic School Lunches in Japan

Environment, Food, Organic Agriculture/Food,

Report on the Special Forum for the Promotion of Organic School Lunches all over Japan

By Koa Tasaka, CUJ

The forum was held on 26 October in Nakano, Tokyo. Over 1100 persons attended physically, and over 1800 joined on-line. In addition, 62 satellite places were set up all over Japan, with some 700 persons joining such events. Among those who attended in the main hall, there were 33 City Mayers including Mr. Ohta, Isumi City Mayor who has spear-headed the effort to introduce organic school lunches in his city. Nine Members of Parliament also attended. I attended the meeting as one of the organizers, and I found many persons I know in the hall such as Mr. Keisuke Amagasa of Consumers Union of Japan and representatives from the Civil Institute of Organic Rice Cultivation.

The program included reports by experts from France and South Korea, along with videos on the activities of school lunches with organic food from various places in Japan. There was a panel discussion as well as presentations by Prof. Nobuhiro Suzuki, Tokyo University, and by Ms. Seiko Uchida, representative of PARC. Ms. Yae, a singer and organic farmer, sang Amazing Grace at the end of the meeting before the declaration for promoting organic school lunches was announced. In addition, there were short speeches by representatives from the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Agriculture, which is significant since these ministries will have to do something positive to promote school lunches with organic ingredients after giving speeches in front of so many people.

As a chemist, I know that the bread provided for everyday school lunches in Japan is made from imported wheat, which is highly contaminated with pesticides such as malathion, sumithion, or reldan. Recently, imported wheat from US has been found to be contaminated with glyphosate (Roundup) as well.

Japan’s Ministry of Education has disclosed a statement that over six percent of Japanese school children have some mental problems, without discussing the cause of these problems. Although it is not possible to prove it, mental problems among children may be related to the chemical contamination of school lunches. That is the reason why I am involved with the movement to replace school lunches using bread made from imported wheat to organically grown rice and vegetables. In that sense, I am very happy to see the development of the school lunch system in Japan with organically produced foods. I really hope that this movement develops further, so that children can grow in good health all over Japan!

Japan Resources – 187

Biodiversity, Biotechnology, Chemical pollution, Environment, Japan Resources, Nuclear, Organic Agriculture/Food, , , , , ,

Please click here for our latest English newsletter (pdf):  JR 187

Contents:

From the Editors: It Is All Connected

Report on the Special Forum for the Promotion of Organic School Lunch all over Japan

Growing Movement to Prevent Distribution of Genome-Edited Tomato Seedlings to Elementary Schools and Welfare Facilities

Public Comment: Ban 30 Substances in Pesticides

Press Release: “We Decide What We Eat Ourselves”

In the News: Over 11 years, close to 9 million people sign drive against nuclear power

From the Editors: It Is All Connected

This year ends with COP15 of the UN conference for biological diversity. We hope media will follow it as much as they did the recent COP27 of the UN conference for climate change.

In fact, these two global issues are interconnected and linked in many ways, that also influence us as consumers (and we, as consumers, can – and should – influence).

For example, by increasing the local and organically farmed food served to school children, Japan could go a long way to contribute to both mitigate climate change and protect biodiversity.

Some 3600 people all over the country are ready to make it happen, according to Koa Tasaka’s report from the Special Forum held in Tokyo this fall.

Please stay updated with CUJ’s activities and news on our English website, as well as on our English Twitter account: https://twitter.com/consumerunionjp/

 

 

Organic School Lunches, All Over Japan

Organic Agriculture/Food, Uncategorized

On 26 October the National Organic School Lunch Forum will be held at Nakano Zero Main Hall in Nakano Ward, Tokyo

Food is deeply related to the environment. Expanding the use of food with a low environmental impact will lead to a society that is kind to living creatures and the planet, and where everyone can be happy. So, to help expand that system, we can give a boost to introducing organic food into school lunches.

And of course organic school lunches are delicious and very healthy for the children.
At this event, we will introduce examples from Japan and other countries that have introduced such organic school lunches, how they have changed and how they can be introduced.

This event is sure to be a useful reference for municipalities interested in organic school lunches and those considering adopting them.

Japan Resources – 183

Biotechnology, Energy, Nuclear, Organic Agriculture/Food, , , ,

Please click here for our latest English newsletter: JR 183

Special focus on energy

Contents:

From the Editors: Energetic Japan

Nuclear Power in Japan, 10 Years after the Fukushima Disaster

CUJ Opinions on the Draft Basic Energy Plan

Will genome edited food be labelled in Japan?

Another Citizens’ Food Summit: The “Green Food System Strategy” proposed by MAFF is not that “Green”

Trend: The 2nd National Nanohana Blossom Summit in Oyama was held in Oyama, Tochigi Prefecture, on 11-12 December 2021

From the Editors:

Energetic Japan

Welcome to issue No. 183 of Consumers Union of Japan’s English newsletter. This time, the theme is energy, a topic that is always timely in resource-poor Japan.

We note that 10 years after the massive earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in 2011, only 10 nuclear reactors have been restarted. Consumers Union of Japan is proposing another way forward, with our motto, local production for local consumption.

We hope you will stay updated with CUJ’s activities and news on our English website, as well as on our new English Twitter account: https://twitter.com/consumerunionjp/