JAPAN Trends and Developments Contributed by: Yasunari Sugiyama, Miki Tsubono, Kenya Suzuki and Mayu Okada, Nishimura & Asahi
tainable Food Systems”, with the goal of ensuring a stable food supply in the future, and established 14 Key Performance Indicator (KPI) targets for the period through to 2050. To promote this strategy, the “Act on Promotion of Environmental Burden Reduction Busi- ness Activities for Establishing Environmentally Har- monised Food Systems” was enacted in April 2022. This provides for: • “Environmental Burden Reduction Business Activi- ties ( kankyo fuka teigen jigyo katsudo )” by agri- cultural, forestry and fisheries operators, which include business activities that contribute to organ- ic agriculture and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, to reduce the environmental impact of agricultural, forestry and fisheries operations; and • “Base Development Business ( kiban kakuritsu jigyo )” activities by machinery and material manu- facturers and food business operators, which include production, sales and leasing of materials and machinery that contribute to the reduction of environmental impacts. The law also establishes measures such as preferen- tial tax treatment, financial assistance, and support for the acquisition of subsidies.
Carbon credits are also being introduced in the agri- cultural sector as a means of supporting sustainable agriculture. A public system called J Credit recognises carbon credits for six agricultural methods, including the use of bio-coal for cropland, the extension of the duration of mid-drought in paddy rice cultivation, and appropriate forest management and other meas- ures in the forestry sector. In addition, J-Blue Credit, a private-sector system, certifies carbon credits for projects such as the creation of seaweed beds in the oceans and the regeneration of endangered seaweed. In the future, the price of carbon credits is expected to rise, and this is also expected to contribute to the profitability of the primary industry sectors. In addition, the Midori Acceleration GX Plan (MIDORI BOOST) was announced in June 2026 to accelerate Green Transformation (GX) in the food, agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors. The plan aims to build a sustainable, resilient and profitable food system by 2030 and to focus on attracting and diversifying private-sector GX investment, adapting to climate change, expanding organic agriculture, promoting renewable energy utilisation and reducing the environ- mental impact of food production. The plan also seeks to enhance food security and to create new economic opportunities by linking sustainability initiatives with growth and innovation in rural area industries.
54 A GRICULTURA L LAW 20 26
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