Social Implementation of the Asian Monsoon Plant Factory System
― Formation of a working group to develop the Plant Factory System in Japan and overseas―

On December 9, 2021, JIRCAS held the "Achievement Briefing Meeting on Asian Monsoon Plant Factory System (AMPFS) Follow-up Activities" at the Tropical Agriculture Research Front (Ishigaki City, Okinawa Prefecture). The purpose of the meeting was to report on the activities of the research project "Development of the Asian Monsoon Model Plant Factory System for Asian Monsoon Area” , and to establish a concrete path for the social implementation of AMPFS both domestically and overseas. This project aims to promote the informatization and production system innovation for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and food industries (FY2016-2020) under the “R&D model project of the Field for Knowledge Integration and Innovation”. 

The meeting was attended by representatives from the embassies of India, Indonesia, and United Arab Emirates, who are interested in the introduction of plant factory system in their respective countries. A tour of the TARF plant factory system facilities allowed the participants to observe the environmental control system of the Asian monsoon model plant factory system for hot and humid environments and the cultivation of tomatoes and strawberries. An overview of the ongoing research project "Establishment of Strawberry Cultivation Technology in the Asian Monsoon Region" (FY2021-FY2023), which has been launched under the “R&D model project of the Field for Knowledge Integration and Innovation” to further develop the results obtained so far was also presented during the meeting.

In July 2021, the Asian Monsoon PFS Social Implementation Working Group was formed to promote the domestic and international deployment of the plant factory system. It is currently conducting studies on the domestic and international deployment of the plant factory system in terms of its production system, cultivation technology, and profit model. In January 2022, a new start-up company will be established by the volunteers of the working group in order to facilitate the domestic and international implementation of the AMPFS.

Social implementation of the AMPFS is expected to realize stable production of high-quality vegetables in Japan as well as in hot and humid regions overseas where global warming is advancing, including Southeast Asia. The representatives from the embassies of the countries who attended the meeting were also very interested in AMPFS. 

In the future, TARF will support the start-up company in terms of research, and as a coordinator responsible for promoting the AMPFS in Japan and overseas, will work towards the improvement of the profitability of agricultural producers in Southeast Asia and other regions, and contribute to the SDGs.

JIRCAS President :　KOYAMA Osamu
Asian Monsoon PFS Working Group Coordinator： OMAE Hide (Director, Tropical Agriculture Research Front)　
　　　　　　Email：pro-nekken@ml.affrc.go.jp
Press Coordinator : OMORI Keisuke (Head, Information and Public Relations Office)   
　　　　　　E-mail：koho-jircas@ml.affrc.go.jp

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