Kitakata's "Country Elevator"

The Situation Today
Fukushima Prefecture's prominent, large-scale agricultural and fishery industries play important roles as suppliers of food, not only to Tokyo but also to the nation.
The prefecture boasts Japan's fourth largest farmland area. Because of the favorable climate, many of the agricultural products grown in Japan, including rice, are produced in Fukushima. The prefecture ranks among the top producers of such fruits as peaches, apples and pears and such vegetables as tomatoes and cucumbers, as well as leaf tobacco and raw silk. Livestock farming is also active. Fukushima's 159 kilometer-long Pacific coastline is the site of the prefecture's vigorous fishing and seafood processing industries and the area's haul of fish is among the nation's largest.
The prefecture seeks to ensure the continuing productivity of its agricultural and fishery industries while at the same time working to conserve the natural environment.

Support Measures
Although agriculture remains the prefecture's major industry, the number of people engaged in full-time farming decreases each year. The rise in the number of elderly farmers presents a serious problem, as does the increasing competition among agricultural producers. In the fishing industry as well, the number of people engaged is on the decline as fishermen face difficulties due to growing international restrictions on fishing and a rise in imported marine products. To counteract these problems, the prefecture is striving to improve farming techniques in order to develop more high quality agricultural products. It is also making efforts to grow new product by using such leading-edge technologies as biotechnology and to develop an advanced information system for agriculture. In the fishing industry, the prefecture supports a shift from catching fish to cultivating them, to protect marine resources and strengthen the production system for marine products.

Prefectural Agriculture and Fishery by Region
Fukushima's agriculture and fishery industries differ according to region, because each of the prefecture's three regions enioy distinct geographical and climatic features.

Hama-dori
Located on the Pacific Coast, the Hama-dori region is the site of the prefecture's fishing and seafood processing industry. Most of the fishing is done offshore, while in certain areas shellfish, salmon, and seaweed are cultivated. Today, the region actively promotes resource control fishery, which emphasizes the incubation and cultivation of fish and shellfish.

Naka-dori
Based in the northern part of the region, where the climate is suitable, Naka-dori's fruit-growers have become one of the nation's major fruit producers. Vegetables are grown in the southern part of the region and, after the opening of Fukushima Airport makes direct links possible between producers and markets throughout the nation, farming in the region should experience dynamic growth.

Aizu
The fertile Aizu Basin is the prefecture's major granary. In the surrounding mountains, with their high altitude and cold climate, vegetables and flowers are cultivated.

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