JIRCAS Report 2020

Publication of “Healthy Seedcane Propagation and Distribution Manual Against Sugarcane White Leaf Disease”

A manual for measures against the sugarcane white leaf disease, which causes great damage in the Asian region especially in Thailand, and created in collaboration with Khon Kaen University etc. was published by the Office of Cane and Sugar Board of Thailand. 

Joso Gakuin Junior High School Students Visit JIRCAS

A group of 17 students and 2 teachers from Joso Gakuin Junior High School visited JIRCAS on March 17, 2021 through the “inquiry-based field tour” program of the the Tsukuba Science Tour. Senior Researcher MARUI Junichiro (Biological Resources and Post-harvest Division) gave a presentation on “Research on delicious and useful fermented foods” and introduced Thai fermented rice noodles (khan jeen) and Lao fermented fish sauce (padek).

Final Report Presentation of the 2019 JIRCAS Visiting Research Fellowship Program

Final Report Presentation of the 2019 JIRCAS Visiting Research Fellowship Program was held on March 10, 2021. Five foreign researchers from research organizations in developing regions, who have been invited to JIRCAS since October 2019, presented their research results for a year and a half. The visiting research fellows include Dr. Gao Xiang (China), Ms Du Zhumei (China), Dr. Giriraj Kumawat (India), Dr. Luciano Nobuhiro Aoyagi (Brazil) and Dr. Sirilak Baramee (Thailand). After the presentation of research results, President Iwanaga congratulated the graduating fellows and presented them with a certificate of completion.

Researcher Nishigaki Receives “Best Presentation Award for Cross-Fertilization” at Science Academy of Tsukuba (SAT) Technology Showcase 2021

Dr. NISHIGAKI Tomohiro, Researcher of the Crop, Livestock and Environment Division of JIRCAS received the “Best Presentation Award for Cross-Fertilization” at the Science Academy of Tsukuba (SAT) Technology Showcase 2021 held online on February 19, 2021, for his research on “Development of a rapid soil fertility assessment technique for improving rice production in Madagascar”, and was awarded a certificate of recognition on March 15, 2021.

JIRCAS Researchers Give Lectures at the 129th JSTA Public Symposium (Online)

Five up-and-coming researchers from JIRCAS will talk about the activities of the SATREPS project at the 129th Japanese Society of Tropical Agriculture (JSTA) Public Symposium to be held online.

Madagascar Agriculture Minister Visits the Demonstration Test Site for Phosphorus Dipping Treatment (P-dipping) Technology

On February 26, 2021, the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Madagascar visited the demonstration test site of the SATREPS project conducted by JIRCAS in Madagascar, providing an opportunity to promote the phosphorus dipping treatment (P-dipping) technology for rice cultivation and promising breeding lines developed in the project.

Crop Science Features the Guinea Yam Genetic Resources Collection Developed by JIRCAS

The Guinea yam genetic resources collection developed by JIRCAS in collaboration with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture and the Iwate Biotechnology Research Center, and to be used in improving the efficiency of breeding and cultivation of Guinea yam, was featured as a science news on the website of the Crop Science Society of America. 

BNI technology was featured in "Green Growth Strategy with Carbon Neutrality by 2050" of Japanese Government.

In October 2020, Prime Minister Suga declared the goal of realizing a carbon-neutral, decarbonized society by 2050. In response, the government formulated the “Green Growth Strategy with Carbon Neutrality by 2050”. “Development of biological nitrification inhibition (BNI) enhanced varieties to reduce GHGs and water pollutants”, is listed as one of the promising innovations in the action plan in “Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries” sector.

JIRCAS Research Collaborator and University of Nigeria Professor Receives Foreign Minister’s Commendation

ProfessorJames Chukwuma Ogbonna (former Deputy Vice-Chancellor) of the Department of Microbiology, University of Nigeria and a JIRCAS research collaborator was one of the recipients of the Foreign Minister’s Commendation for 2020 as announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Release of JIRCAS 50th Anniversary International Symposium 2020 Video

The video featuring each session of the JIRCAS 50th Anniversary International Symposium “The role of international collaboration in agricultural research to address challenges in the post-COVID-19 global food system” is now available at the following link:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLd_qmyirYdYordCpUoOqk8QGXDAaCBsxS

Saitama Prefectural Kumagaya High School Students Visit JIRCAS

A group of 40 first year senior high school students and 2 teachers from Saitama Prefectural Kumagaya High School visited JIRCAS on November 27, 2020 as part of the Super Science High School (SSH) out-of-school learning program. As a safety measure, the students were divided into two groups for introduction of JIRCAS research initiatives (indoor) and introduction of rice samples at the Hachimandai Experimental Field (outdoor).

JIRCAS Asia Biomass Project Exhibit at the Agro Innovation 2020

The research activities and achievements of the JIRCAS Asia Biomass Project were exhibited at the Agro Innovation 2020 (Organizer: Japan Management Association) held at the Tokyo Big Sight Aomi Exhibition Hall from November 11th (Wed) to 13th (Fri), 2020. The event was a specialized exhibition for cutting-edge technologies and products related to the entire value chain of the Japanese agricultural industry. Countermeasures against the new coronavirus infection such as temperature measurement, wearing a mask and disinfecting were thoroughly implemented at the exhibition hall.

Tochigi Prefectural High School Students Visit JIRCAS

A group of 40 first year senior high school students and 2 teachers from Tochigi Prefectural High School visited JIRCAS through the "Tsukuba Science Tour" on November 11, 2020. As a safety measure, the students were divided into two groups for introduction of JIRCAS research initiatives (indoor) and introduction of rice samples at the Hachimandai Experimental Field (outdoor).

JIRCAS Senior Researchers Fujita and Maruyama are Highly Cited Researchers for 7 Consecutive Years

Dr. FUJITA Yasunari and Dr. MARUYAMA Kyonoshin, Senior Researchers in the Biological Resources and Post-harvest Division, were named Highly Cited Researchers for 2020 in the Plant and Animal Science category, marking 7 consecutive years of being included in the annual list of the Clarivate Analytics.

Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste Visits JIRCAS HQ

The Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste to Japan, H.E. Mr. Ilidio Ximenes da Costa, paid a courtesy visit to the JIRCAS Headquarters in Tsukuba on November 19, 2020.