Food
Technology development towards building a new food system with improved productivity, sustainability and resilience
Research Highlights
Related JIRCAS Report
TERRA Africa Project FY2025 Holds Activity Report Meeting – Towards “Technology Establishment for Regional-adapted Regenerative Agriculture in Africa”
From February 17 to 18, 2026, the “TERRA Africa Project FY2025 Activity Report Meeting” was held at the University for Development Studies (UDS) in Tamale, Northern Ghana. A total of 54 participants attended, including researchers from JIRCAS, UDS, and the Savannah Agricultural Research Institute (SARI), as well as representatives from the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) and The Nippon Foundation.
JIRCAS Participates in the Food Tech Public-Private Council FY2025 3rd General Meeting/Proposal and Reporting Session
On Thursday, February 26, the Food Tech Public-Private Council’s FY2025 3rd General Meeting / Proposal and Reporting Session, hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, was held at Tokyo Innovation Base STAGE (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo). From JIRCAS, Dr. MARUI Junichiro, Senior Researcher in the Biological Resources and Post-harvest Division, took the stage to deliver a presentation titled "Taking Japanese Koji to the World." He introduced international joint research currently being conducted with Japanese companies and researchers from Thailand and Laos to deploy food production technologies that utilize Japanese koji to create safe, highly nutritious food products overseas.
Press Release
Events
JIRCAS International Symposium 2024 : Resilient Genetic Resources for Food Security in the Era of Global Boiling – Opportunities and Challenges for Conservation and Utilization
Registration period:
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(JST)
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U Thant International Conference Hall + Online(United Nations University 3F, 5-53-70 Jingu-mae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8925)
The Bolivia Symposium—The Charms of Salar de Uyuni, Quinoa, and Llamas
Registration period:
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(JST)
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JST Tokyo Headquarters Annex (K's Gobancho) + Online(7, Gobancho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0076)
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Pick Up1392. To Develop Rice Plants That Can Withstand Excess Iron in Africa
Iron is an essential element for plants, but in many parts of Southeast Asia and Africa, there is an excess supply of iron, which has a negative impact on the growth of plants, especially rice. This article introduces research aimed at elucidating the mechanism behind this "iron toxicity" and discovering rice genes that are important for healthy rice growth even under such conditions.
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Pick Up1385. Trying to Make a Case in Africa: “Let the Fields Rest and Enrich the Farmers!”
While Africa is considered one of the world's most promising growth markets, it is also the region with the largest number of people suffering from hunger. One of the causes of hunger is soil degradation. This article introduces research aimed at effectively disseminating the "Fallow Band System" to farmers, which helps protect African soil, stabilize food production, increase farmers' incomes, and reduce hunger and poverty. -
Pick Up1234. From JIRCAS Southeast Asia Liaison Office #7: "Khao mak"
In Japan, amazake is called "drinkable intravenous drip" and is said to have beauty benefits. In fact, there is amazake in Thailand called "Khao mak" -
Pick Up1161: Utilizing "Farmer Knowledge" in Africa for Technology Diffusion
The word "knowledge" is associated with what we learn in school classes, but apart from such knowledge, farmers' experiential knowledge, which they acquire through their daily experiences, is called "farmer knowledge." To date, many technologies that are supposed to make sustainable agriculture possible have been disseminated in Africa, but there is a problem that farmers do not use them or stop using them soon after they are used. One possible solution to this problem is to understand "farmer knowledge. If we researchers can understand what farmers value and what they consider difficult in their daily farm work, and how they understand the characteristics of the soil and crops, we believe it will be possible to develop technologies that meet farmers' wishes and disseminate technologies in a way that is easily accepted by farmers. -
Pick Up1013. The Bolivia Symposium—The Charms of Salar de Uyuni, Quinoa, and Llamas
JIRCAS is pleased to announce the joint symposium with the Embassy of Bolivia in Japan, titled "The Bolivia Symposium—The Charms of Salar de Uyuni, Quinoa, and Llamas", to be held on Monday, May 20, 2024, at the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) Tokyo Headquarters Annex.
Article and Publication
2026
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Matsuda, Ryuya , Faisan, Joseph P. , Sollesta-Pitogo, Hananiah , de la Peña, Leobert D. (2026) Evaluation of cultivation potential and carrageenan properties of Hypnea sp. from Panay Island, Philippines. Aquaculture International, 34 :69-. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-026-02475-5
s10499-026-02475-51.1 MB
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Hayami, Natsuki , Sugekawa, Kazuki , Yanase, Emiko , Maruyama, Kyonoshin , Yamamoto, Yoshiharu Y. (2026) Interaction between cold and high light stresses distinguishes transcriptional responses for freezing tolerance and photoprotection in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Signaling & Behavior, 21 :2622127-.
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Oo, Aung Zaw , Asai, Hidetoshi , Songyikhangsuthor, Khamdok , Vongphouthone, Banthasack , Takai, Toshiyuki , Marui, Junichiro , Saito, Hiroki , Vilayheuang, Koukham (2026) The role of seed phytic acid levels in promoting black rice growth, nutrient use efficiency, and yield under low-input conditions. Frontiers in Agronomy, 8 :1743691-. https://doi.org/10.3389/fagro.2026.1743691
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Kusano, Eiichi , Malee, Satip , Sirimachan, Nattatinee , Pinsri, Nantanat , Sappanukroh, Phattaraporn , Nitjarunkul, Achariya , Jamrutsri, Parichat , Kobori, Youichi (2026) Cost estimation model for small-scale rearing systems of natural enemy insects : Propagation for controlling Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Thailand. CABI Agriculture and Bioscience, 7 :0006-1-0006-9. https://doi.org/10.1079/ab.2026.0006
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Maruyama, Kyonoshin , Tsujimoto, Yasuhiro , Kishimoto, Miho , Yoshiwara, Kyouko , Sakai, Hiroaki , Sakurai, Tetsuya , Sakamoto, Shingo , Mitsuda, Nobutaka , Maruyama-Nakashita, Akiko (2026) Identification and characterization of low-sulfur-inducible genes and pathways in roots of upland and lowland rice grown under hydroponic and soil conditions. Journal of Experimental Botany, :1-16.
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2025
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植田, 佳明 (2025) ゲノミクス解析を通したマダガスカルのイネの改良に向けて. 国際農林業協力, 48 :16-23.
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Yurimoto, Tatsuya (2025) Ecological responses of pen shell, Atrina lischkeana, and ark shell, Scapharca kagoshimensis, to sediment characteristics in a temperate tidal flat. International Journal of Aquatic Biology, 13 :1-9.
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Wang, Zixiao , Shibata, Makoto , Niu, Guoxiang , Sawada, Kozue , Lyu, Han , Zheng, Jinsen , Fukushima, Keitaro , Funakawa, Shinya (2025) Effects of topography and fine roots on soil nitrogen transformations in acidic coniferous forest soils. Forest Ecosystems, 15 :100420-. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fecs.2025.100420
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Kushino, Sayako , Mizuno, Nobuyuki , Shirasawa, Kenta , Kobayashi, Yasufumi , Fujita, Yasunari , Nishimura, Kazusa , Ueno, Mariko , Takeuchi, Naoko , Saito, Hiroki , Adachi, Shunsuke , Katsura, Keisuke , Hirakawa, Hideki , Yasui, Yasuo (2025) Discovery of a novel CYP76AD1–DODA1 gene cluster associated with betalain pigmentation in quinoa. Cytologia, 90 :227-238. https://doi.org/10.1508/cytologia.90.227
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Yurimoto, Tatsuya , Kassim, Faizul Mohd , Rahim, Masazurah Abdul (2025) Seasonal variation in feeding activity and fatness of cultured oysters in the Merbok Estuary, Malaysia. Egyptian Journal of Aquatic Research, 52 :92-100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejar.2025.11.001