Agriculture in Hokkaido

Bhutan is well known for being an agrarian society to both inside and the outside world so adding value to our existing strength would only proliferate our value. Learned from the agricultural evolution in Hokkaido.

Hokkaido is one of the prefectures located in northern Japan where four seasons can be experienced distinctly.

It wasn’t an easy start even for them as they also started with barren and forest covered land where fields were ploughed by horses. Well that was because at that time that was the only available resource. Making the best use of the available resources is something we have to learn rather than crying on what we don’t have.

Pic from Sensei's lecture slide

Nothing is done blindly which includes even planting the trees in rows along the farms which is done to serve as a barrier to the wind. This is something my District can adopt as Wangdue is known for strong winds. It was rather ignorant of me not to know that straight crops have higher market value compared to the bent ones especially asparagus.

The number of people doing agriculture has declined over the years due to the ageing population yet the size of the agricultural land remains the same. Although labor shortage and aging population is a concern for them like our country they challenge numbers with efficiency (mechanization). Fortunately, for Hokkaido it has the maximum number of core farmers which is 60% of the total population aged below 65 years compared to the rest of Japan. That’s why Hokkido is the highest producer of Agriculture crops in Japan. Even the farmers here make 4-5% higher profit in comparison to the farmers in the rest of Japan.

I always thought being a farmer would not require any qualification yet it isn't the case here. To be a farmer in Hokkaido one needs to be certified. Likewise there are no off seasons for the farmers here they work full time and throughout the year although three winter months are fully covered by snow. These winter months are considered rather crucial for the farmers as they make plans for purchasing seeds for the next cropping season, develop operating/farming plans and get approval from the Agriculture Cooperatives because if the plans gets approved one gets a loan to purchase seeds for the coming cropping season. It is interesting to learn that all the farmers here have completed senior high school so they are all literate and run their farm like running a business. 

Amazed, overwhelmed and inspired to see how the agriculture practices have advanced here.

Flaunting the gift from Sensei