Two Smart Agriculture Plans Certified

On July 31, 2026, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries certified two development and supply implementation plans submitted by Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. and Asai Nouen Co., Ltd. under the Act on Promotion of Smart Agriculture Technology Utilization concerning improved agricultural productivity.

The Act establishes a system under which the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries certifies plans for developing smart agriculture technologies and other technologies of particularly high importance in agriculture and disseminating their results.

As technologies that help reduce labor time in labor-intensive farm work, the plans identify labor-saving husbandry management for livestock and dairy farming, along with advanced automated irrigation systems for fruit cultivation and related activities that can respond even during extreme heat and prolonged drought.

The dissemination of technologies certified under the system is expected to support higher productivity at agricultural sites and increase added value in fruit cultivation and related activities.

Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. will develop and supply technologies for monitoring the health and other conditions of calves during the nursing and rearing stages through contactless sensing, together with a continuous health and growth management system covering calves from nursing through rearing.

Asai Nouen Co., Ltd. will measure transpiration volume and environmental information using leaf-mounted gas-exchange measurement sensors and drones equipped with multispectral cameras, and supply advanced automated irrigation systems based on multiple sensing datasets for fruit cultivation and related activities.

Operators whose plans are certified can receive financial, tax, and other support measures. This certification followed a review under which the requirements were found to be satisfied pursuant to Article 13, Paragraph 4 of the Act.