Wheat Production

Ranking on the amount of production of wheat, the self-sufficiency ratio of which is decreasing. The amount of production of four types of wheat (common wheat, six-row barley, two-row barley, naked barley) by prefecture can be found in the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries' statistics.

Chugoku-shikoku Regional Agricultural Administration Office Statistics:

Japan relies mostly on import for wheat, but the situation differed only several decades ago.

Present Situation of Wheat Production in Japan

Wheat crop acreage was greatest in 1914, with 1,810,000ha. This is close to the 1,790,000ha of area of dry and wet land rice in 1999. On the other hand, wheat crop acreage was smallest in 1973 with 75,000ha. At that time, it was referred to as "euthanasia of domestic wheat."

Before, self-sufficiency ratio was also greater.

National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology:

There are several factors leading to the drastic decrease in the production of wheat, but the following are given as major factors:
・Shift from double-cropping of rice and wheat to single-cropping of rice, due to decrease in agricultural population and increase in farmers with side businesses.
・Hesitation towards production of products other than rice, due to the political maintenance of rice price.
・Effects of the U.S. common wheat strategy wishing for Japanese consumption of surplus common wheat in its own country.

Although the government has been working towards increase in the production of wheat, the self-sufficiency ratio still remains low.

The amount of production is great in Hokkaido, northern Kanto and northern Kyushu. In northern Kyushu and northern Kanto, wheat is cultivated from autumn to spring as an aftercrop of rice, but in Hokkaido, wheat is cultivated from spring to autumn as the first crop. This is because Hokkaido is climatically suitable for wheat which prefers a cooler climate compared to rice.

Northern Kanto is suitable for cultivating wheat because of its well-drained soil due to the loamy layer in the Kanto Plain, its long hours of sunlight in the wintertime and its mild wintertime chill.

Saga where secondary crops are common, has the greatest rate of use of cultivated land. Wheat is cultivated as the secondary crop in many raice fields. The amount of production per 100 thousand population is greatest in Saga, with 12,000 tons of production per 100 thousand population. This is 14 times the national average and far exceeds other prefectures in northern Kyushu.