The , in short , is an independent administrative Japanese body within the Japan Agriculture (JA) Group which determines policy and administrates the group. Its legal status was originally a Recognised Corporate Body under the control of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), but since 2002 has become a Special Civilian Corporate Body.

History

The body was founded for the aforementioned purposes in 1954. It gained larger recognition in the next year when it replaced the then existing Union of National Agricultural Cooperatives at the

International Co-operative Alliance The International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) is a non-governmental co-operative federation or, more precisely, a co-operative union representing co-operatives and the co-operative movement worldwide. It was founded in 1895 to unite, represent an ...

(ICA). After its advent, Zenchu had been preoccupied with maintaining and increasing government price supports on rice and other crops and with holding back the import of cheaper agricultural products from abroad. Self-sufficient in rice, Japan in the early 1990s imported only a tiny quantity. A special variety of Thai rice, for example, is used specifically to make the traditional

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

n liquor,

awamori ''Awamori'' (, Okinawan: , āmui'') is an alcoholic beverage indigenous and unique to Okinawa, Japan. It is made from long grain indica rice, and is not a direct product of brewing (like ''sake'') but of distillation (like ''shōchū''). The ...

. Zenchu's determination to preserve "Fortress Japan" in the agricultural realm had brought it into conflict with business groups such as

Keidanren The is an economic organization founded in May 2002 by amalgamation of Keidanren (, Japan Federation of Economic Organizations, established 1946; name sometimes used alone as abbreviation for whole organization) and Nikkeiren (, Japan Federatio ...

, which advocated market liberalization and lower

food prices Food prices refer to the average price level for food across countries, regions and on a global scale. Food prices have an impact on producers and consumers of food. Price levels depend on the food production process, including food marketing an ...

. The Zenchu headquarters are coincidentally located next to the office of the Keidanren which it conflicts with. Although closely allied to the LDP in the past, Nokyo and other agricultural groups were outraged by the government's concessions to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

on imports of oranges and beef in 1988. Local cooperatives threatened to defect to the

Japan Socialist Party The was a socialist and progressive political party in Japan that existed from 1945 to 1996. The party was founded as the Social Democratic Party of Japan by members of several proletarian parties that existed before World War II, including ...

if government continued to give in to United States demands. The Japan Socialist Party chairwoman at the time, Doi Takako, made agricultural

protectionism Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

a major component of her party's platform.

Publications

The Zenchu circulates factbooks concerning food and agriculture in Japan, specifically, problems relating to food and food supply. It also publishes monthly the ''Gekkan JA''. The 2007 July issue focused on the international aid activities which the cooperatives undertake. ''JA'' (short for ''Japan Agricultural Cooperatives'') is another common name for Nokyo.

References

*
Japan

External links

JA-Zenchu
, official website
JA全中
, official website in Japanese Trade associations based in Japan Agricultural cooperatives Agricultural organizations based in Japan Cooperatives in Japan {{agriculture-org-stub

History

Publications

See also

References

External links