"Indigenous crops and foods design"
Design of crop breeding and food processing of indigenous resources to create new and diversified demands
Related Research Program
Food
2025-08-04
Background
The environment surrounding the world's food systems and agriculture is changing due to climate change, globalization, and the COVID-19 pandemic etc., and the way food is produced, distributed, and consumed is undergoing a period of transformation. In order to improve nutrition in developing regions, it is important to work across various fields, and research on the quality of indigenous crops and traditional foods in the region is needed. At present, innovative developments such as IoT and next-generation sequencers are making it possible to comprehensively analyze the functionality and processing characteristics of indigenous crops and traditional foods at the molecular level.
Objectives
We will develop production technologies, breeding materials, and foods that can respond to food and nutrition issues by clarifying the functionality and processing characteristics of various indigenous crop genetic resources (rice, ginger, yam etc.) and traditional foods from Laos, Nigeria, Japan and other countries using advanced technologies.
Research Themes
- Establishment of methods for utilization of indigenous crop genetic resources
- Development of evaluation and processing technologies for new food products
- Development and evaluation of production technologies for high value-added crops
Target Countries
Laos, Thailand, Nigeria
Target Beneficiaries
Research institutions, dissemination organizations such as JICA, universities, food and drug manufacturers etc.
Project Leader
MARUYAMA Kyonoshin (Biological Resources and Post-harvest Division)
Poster
Related Pages
JIRCAS Report
Publication of a Book Series Analyzing Food Security in Rural and Mountainous Areas of Laos
Dr. HASADA Katsumi, Senior Researcher in the Rural Development Division, has compiled the results of his research on food security conducted in Laos and published them as a book series on March 31, 2026.
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.
JIRCAS Research Highlights Presented at Kaset Fair 2026, Kasetsart University, Thailand
Kaset Fair 2026, an agricultural exhibition, is being held at Kasetsart University in Thailand from January 30 to February 7, 2026. Kaset Fair, Thailand's largest agricultural and food trade fair, is hosted annually by Kasetsart University. During the event, the university campus hosts a wide variety of exhibits, from research highlights related to the agriculture and food industry to sales of agricultural and food products, attracting many visitors.
Research Highlights
Article and Publication
2026
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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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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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Shompoosang, Sirinan , Marui, Junichiro , Saah, Safiah , Intarajak, Thoranin , Varichanan, Patthinan (2025) Enhanced Nutritional and Bioactive Properties of Riceberry Rice Amazake Lactic Fermented with Thermotolerant Pediococcus acidilactici FSPO-PJ1. Trends in Sciences, 23 :11456-. https://doi.org/10.48048/tis.2026.11456
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Takai, Toshiyuki , Saito, Hiroki , Marui, Junichiro , Oo, Aung Zaw , Vilayheuang, Koukham , Phongchanmixay, Sengthong , Asai, Hidetoshi (2025) Detection and characterization of quantitative trait loci for phytic acid in grains toward improved black rice in northern Laos. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 9 :1620644-. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2025.1620644
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