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Departure
Takashi Kimijima, 44, is a man, who left a company he'd worked
for over 12 years to be a farmer in Azumino, Nagano. It was about
four and a half years ago. He was not driven to agriculture,
however, by a vague yearning for an idyllic life in the country. At
his previous work, he was involved in agricultural research and planning
for developing countries, closely associated with the Japanese
government's ODA (Official Development Assistance). He was delving
into agriculture and leading others, from an overlooking position, so to
speak. He then decided that he wanted to touch the soil himself and
to actually try farming in the field. Behind the decision, there
was his dream to get closer to agriculture and his desire to live
a more fulfilling life together with his family. At
present, he carries a dual life of farmer and scholar -- a farmer when he
is in Azumino and a researcher when he goes overseas on agricultural
development projects. He has macro-level knowledge of and skill in
agriculture, gained through his experience as a development consultant.
He has also acquired know-how on farming from planting to harvesting,
through steps of actual farmwork. He believes that if both are
combined, he can understand agriculture more fully.
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"When I started, I said to myself I would
enjoy farming no matter what if I was to become a farmer. I've made
many mistakes in trials and errors, but there've been a lot of
unexpected discoveries as well. After about 3 years, I finally got
a grasp on planting placement and productivity, and became able to
start preparations taking into account the timing of planting. Of
course, my farm still doesn't look as good as those done by experienced
farmers."
White teeth spilled from his darkly tanned face under the straw hat. (to lower left,
Encounter with
Agriculture in the World) |
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Encounter with
Agriculture in the World
His job as a development consultant, the other face of
him, also keeps him busy. Though he left the consulting firm, he has
been traveling overseas frequently, pressed by research, project planning
and policy consulting on agricultural development for developing
countries. This he must manage between farming in Azumino. It's an extremely demanding life but he firmly believes that agricultural
problems are not for Japan alone and to be solved only globally.
Having set foot in impoverished farming villages
overseas, he has closely observed the state of "ultimate poverty
equals food shortage." Having seen people suffering sheer
poverty in countries like India and Nepal in South Asia, Viet Nam and
Cambodia in Southeast Asia, and Zambia and Tanzania in South Africa, he is
deeply troubled by the fact that so much food is wasted in Japan. He
remembers the anger he felt when Japan, hit by serious cold-weather damage
several years ago, imported rice from Thailand immediately. It not
only wreak havoc to the rice market in Thailand but led Japan to the
outrageous act of dumping the rice because "it didn't taste
good."
It's true that Japan's agricultural assistance,
technical as well as economic, has contributed to the advancement of
developing countries. However, it rather gets things backwards if
the people of these countries can't support themselves because they have
become dependent on the ODA. Thus, Mr. Kimijima believes it is
important that he stay behind the stage as a consultant and continue to
provide technical support and train people. He insists that it
is also essential to raise the awareness of those in Japan associated with
the ODA on the provider's side, notwithstanding the corporate sector
crowding around the mega-budgets and people of different races, that are
involved.
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"Agricultural
cooperation for developing countries, though it sounds simple when said,
can't succeed just by offering technical assistance. There are
differences among countries in natural conditions, problems with social
infrastructure, such as roads, water and electricity, problems related to
social systems including land-ownership, and problems that have to do with
the market and distribution system. At the same time, these problems
are combined intricately to keep agricultural areas poor. It is the ODA's
role, I believe, not only to offer them money but also lead them to
realize such obstacles and to stand on their own feet. It's ideal
that, as a result of repeating the step, the ODA will become no longer
necessary."
In the future, the food problem can be solved only if
tackled globally. Mr. Kimijima wants to start voicing his opinions
and suggestions on these issues at any opportunity that
will come to him.
Personal
Encounter with Agriculture
When he returns to Azumino, farmwork is awaiting.
Of the 4-tan (approx. 1 acre) land he rents, a half is allotted for
paddy field and the other half for non-paddy field.@Besides rice, he plants potatoes, legumes, and
other vegetables, mainly for his family's consumption. His main
crops are those that are preservable, and he has begun to try new crops
such as wheat, rye and black soybean, so as to expand the variety of
his family's staple food. Though not practicing adherently at
present, he considers
using more organic fertilizers to better utilize resources. Further,
he tries to keep the use of chemicals to a minimum as his
policy is to make vegetables safe to eat raw.
Fierce battles with weeds and insects are unavoidable
but he has come to see it as part of fun of farmwork and, at the
same time, another interesting aspect of farming.
"Up until recently, farming to me was; you produce
crops, deliver them to JA (NohKyo / Japan Agricultural
Cooperative), and that's the end of it. I only saw it from
upstream in terms of the flow of a river. But I've started to
realize that agriculture, if approached as the core of the issue, is an
industry full of untapped potentials, such as developing new distribution
routes and revitalizing rural towns. If farmers can develop new
markets as well as face-to-face relationships with consumers, they will
cease to engage in the business from just sheer force of habit. You
can also communicate with the world easily through personal computers and the
Internet. I'm planning to start various experiments through agriculture,
and now the time is ripe for innovative experimentation in the field of
agriculture and I
think agriculture is an industry with a bright future."
Mr. Kimijima says, when he gets tired from farmwork, he
sits down on a ridge in the paddy and feels relaxed looking up at the
North Alps. "Hurry at ease" is the expression that fits
his life.
[Report: Y. Yamakawa / trans.:
TS] |
