Japan's rice farms rotting from inside despite protectionism

Ryugasaki, Japan

SHUICHI Yokota may be the future of Japan's struggling rice industry. The 38-year-old is about half the age of most growers and he relies on cutting-edge technology to cultivate vast paddy fields that eclipse the bulk of the country's rice plots.

And Mr Yokota doesn't fear opening up to foreign competition - taboo in a place where rice is a sacred cow that is protected by subsidies and massive tariffs. His farm in Ryugasaki, a community north of Tokyo, has ballooned more than five-fold in 15 years into an operation spanning 112 hectares - almost 30 times bigger than the tiny commercial rice fields commonly found in the area.

"This is simply the consequence of retiring farmers asking me to cultivate their rice paddies for them," Mr Yokota said. "I am one of very few full-time farmers in this area, and the people who were retiring didn't have anyone in the family to continue…