Reviewing Rice Price Surge and Rebuilding Supply Policies | Chapter 7Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Recovery and Disaster Preparedness

The Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, caused extensive and severe damage across a wide area centered on Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures, including the impact of the accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. Following the Second Reconstruction and Creation Period from fiscal 2021 through fiscal 2025, the government has designated the five years from fiscal 2026 through fiscal 2030 as the Third Reconstruction and Creation Period and continues reconstruction, including in agriculture.

Agriculture-related damage from the Great East Japan Earthquake amounted to 969.2 billion yen, while total damage related to agriculture, forestry, and fisheries amounted to 2.4484 trillion yen. Of the 19,610 ha of farmland targeted for restoration, 18,960 ha, or 97%, had become available for farming as of the end of March 2026. Restoration targets included 96 major drainage pumping stations, 122 agricultural coastal districts, and 401 agricultural settlement drainage districts.

In Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures, farmland consolidation into larger plots had been completed by the end of March 2025 on 8,240 ha, equivalent to 98% of the planned development area of 8,380 ha; 6,850 ha of this area was divided into plots of 50 ares or more. Reconstruction is advancing beyond restoration through the reorganization of production infrastructure and the rebuilding of regional agriculture.

In the 12 municipalities affected by the nuclear accident, the area where farming resumed increased by 546 ha from the previous fiscal year to 9,145 ha at the end of fiscal 2024. However, progress varies by municipality depending on when evacuation orders were lifted and on the status of residents’ return, and delayed resumption remains a challenge particularly in municipalities containing areas where return is difficult. By fiscal 2030, the goal is to resume farming on approximately 11,000 ha of the 17,298 ha where farming had been suspended as of the end of December 2011.

Agricultural production in Fukushima prefecture as a whole recovered from 233 billion yen in 2010 to 216.3 billion yen in 2023, approximately 90% of the earlier level. In the 12 municipalities affected by the nuclear accident, however, it remained at 17.9 billion yen, down from 39.1 billion yen in 2006 and approximately 50% of the pre-disaster level. Recovery of the regional economy requires not only farmland restoration but also the formation of production areas encompassing processing and sales.

Ensuring safety and addressing reputational damage are directly linked to trust among producers, consumers, and distributors. In fiscal 2025, no agricultural or livestock products eligible for cultivation or animal-rearing management exceeded the reference levels for radioactive substances, and a survey released in March 2026 found that approximately 4.0% of people hesitated to purchase products from Fukushima prefecture. Relevant ministries and agencies disseminate information around the pillars of learning, eating, and visiting, combining inspections, Good Agricultural Practices certification, and sales promotion.

To support the resumption of farming, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries supports farmland aggregation and consolidation, larger plots, and the securing and training of farmers in each municipality. Since fiscal 2020, it has also provided personnel support through staff dispatches. Among farmland where farming had been suspended, 4,245 ha were subject to development or consideration, and 2,754 ha had been fully developed by the end of fiscal 2024. More than 300 people started farming during the six years from 2020 to 2025, and 32 corporations from outside the municipalities entered agriculture after the earthquake.

Efforts are also advancing to match farmers from outside the region with farmland and to create production areas integrating processing and sales. In 2023, Soma Ya Co., Ltd. built a packaged-rice factory in Naraha Town, Fukushima prefecture, which began operating in November of the same year. It can produce 8,000 meals per hour and uses rice produced in the 12 municipalities affected by the nuclear accident. A survey found that among 2,677 farmers, 45.2% had resumed farming, 5.7% intended to resume, 39.6% had no intention of resuming, and 9.6% had not decided.

As of the end of March 2026, agriculture, forestry, and fisheries-related damage from the Noto Peninsula Earthquake and the Oku-Noto Heavy Rain amounted to 381.8 billion yen and 62.7 billion yen, respectively. The heavy rain deposited sediment and driftwood over approximately 400 ha, and restoration had been completed on approximately 170 ha. In 2025, rice was planted on approximately 2,000 ha in the four Oku-Noto municipalities.

In recent disaster recovery, 5,016 of the 6,137 projects targeted by the heavy rains and other disasters of 2023, and 427 of the 1,327 projects targeted by those of 2024, had been completed by the end of March 2026. Agriculture, forestry, and fisheries-related damage in 2025 amounted to 203.5 billion yen. Designation as a severe disaster increased national subsidy rates for farmland, agricultural facilities, and other assets, reducing the burden on local governments and affected farmers.

National resilience efforts are advancing measures for reservoirs, including structural and nonstructural measures; earthquake resistance for agricultural water-management and settlement drainage facilities; disaster prevention and mitigation at wholesale markets; business continuity in horticultural production areas; and cooperation across food supply chains. As of the end of March 2026, the use of farmland and agricultural water-management facilities had been incorporated into 110 of 119 projects across 109 first-class river systems. The area covered by paddy-field dams reached 99,000 ha in fiscal 2024, and flood-control capacity was secured at 148 agricultural dams during the flood season of fiscal 2025.

For drought and high-temperature measures, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries dispatched MAFF-SAT to 19 prefectures for a total of 240 person-days, lent pumps in 8 prefectures for a total of 1,333 pump-days, and arranged water trucks in 4 prefectures for a total of 29 water-truck-days. It also subsidized the costs of emergency pumps, water trucks, rotational water distribution, and other measures in 394 municipalities across 26 prefectures. Agricultural business continuity plans promote checklists and formats, greenhouse reinforcement, snow-melting equipment, and enrollment in horticultural facility mutual aid. Households are asked to stockpile at least three days of food and drinking water, or one week if possible, while information is also disseminated to prevent excessive hoarding.