"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
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.
Senior Researcher ISEKI Kohtaro Receives Best Research Award at the International Symposium on Tropical Root and Tuber Crops
Dr. ISEKI Kohtaro, Senior Researcher in the Biological Resources and Post-harvest Division, received the Best Research Award at the “International Symposium on Tropical Root & Tuber Crops for Nutrition, Agri-food Systems, Resilience, Entrepreneurship and Sustainability,” held in Thiruvananthapuram, India, from November 17 to 21, 2025.
Future Science Talent Academy – 12th Session: First-Year Students from Tochigi Prefectural Moka High School Visit JIRCAS
On Thursday, October 9, 2025, 40 first-year students from Tochigi Prefectural Moka High School visited the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS) for the 12th session of the Future Science Talent Academy.
Research Highlights
Article and Publication
2026
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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
2025
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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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