B) Main Findings

1. Policy efforts toward improving sustainability of food systems and achieving SDGs by municipal governments (1) Ishikawa Prefecture - The Noto region has won Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) certification from the perspective of preserving ancient agriculture and farming methods as well as preserving people's lives and culture in promoting the Noto region. With this certification as a trigger, various regional promotion efforts have progressed.

- The Ishikawa Support Fund for New Entry in Agriculture was established, which provides financial support to promote the new entry into agriculture in the Noto region. With regard to regional agriculture, there are issues such as an aging population, a shortage of farmers, and an increase in abandoned farmland, and Ishikawa Prefecture and three regional financial institutions have implemented financial support for new entry into agriculture and expansion of farm management scale. So far, 42 companies inside and outside Ishikawa Prefecture have entered agricultural businesses in the region, and more than 500 hectares of abandoned farmland will be used for cultivation as farmland, and about 190 new jobs will be created.

- By collaborating with private companies such as automobile companies, we have realized efficiency of work processes and reduction of production costs. We are aiming to improve the profitability of the agriculture, forestry and fisheries industry by creating low-cost paddy rice production models in hilly and mountainous areas.

- In addition, the Ishikawa Satoyama Promotion Fund was established to support citizens and companies working on the development of new products and services by utilizing local resources. So far, 265 products and services have been developed.

- We also work on branding of agriculture, forestry and fishery products and processed products. Among the products produced and manufactured in the local satoyama and satoumi（community-based forest and sea）, those that are considered to contribute to the conservation and succession of the GIAHS are certified as "Noto-no-Ippin" to improve the added value of Noto's agriculture, forestry and fishery products and processed products, which will also enhance the attractiveness of the GIAHS. We also support the exhibition of "Noto-no-Ippin" at exhibitions in the Tokyo metropolitan area.

- Furthermore, we promote Ishikawa slow tourism. With the farmhouse inn as the core, we will disseminate the charm of the prefecture's Satoyama and Satoumi, including "food." Specifically, we provide support for the opening of farmhouses by providing information on vacant houses in old private houses, support after opening, and support for the development of programs for a long stay utilizing the Satoyama Promotion Fund. "Shunran- no-Sato", which started from one farmhouse inn, provides tourists with experiences such as farming and hunting wild plants, and has now expanded to 47 farmhouses. More than 10,000 tourists visited there in 2019. In addition, the number of incomers, who want to open farmhouse-inn, has been increasing, and it is expected to be a clue to solve problems such as depopulation and aging in rural areas.

- In the Noto area, the effect of being certified as the GIAHS has spread beyond the framework of agriculture, forestry and fisheries to other industries such as tourism, and the "Ishikawa model" initiative that has led to regional revitalization is progressing. In order to build a sustainable food system in the future, (1) securing and training human resources who support the region, from inside and outside the region, (2) innovation of agricultural production and agricultural management in collaboration with other industries, and promoting efforts to secure local employment and income by developing products and services that utilize local resources.

- In the fall of 2021, International Conference on Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) 2021 will be held to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Japan's certification of GIAHS for the first time. At this conference, we would like to disseminate our efforts such as "Ishikawa model", both domestically and internationally.

(2) Shiga Prefecture - Lake Biwa, the largest lake in Japan, is located in the center of Shiga prefecture, and agriculture centered on rice cultivation is carried out in the prefecture. A characteristic of Shiga Prefecture's agriculture is that the proportion of rice in agricultural output is high at about 60%. The number of village farming corporations is the third largest in Japan. The agricultural land accumulation rate to bearers is 62.1%, which is the 8th highest in Japan.

- Since 460 large and small rivers flow into Lake Biwa, the lives of the citizens in the prefecture cause a great impact on the environment of Lake Biwa. With the outbreak of freshwater red tide in Lake Biwa in 1977, citizens’ interests in the environmental issues have been increased. Freshwater red tide is caused by eutrophication due to synthetic detergents used in household, etc., which is a condition in which nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus are abundant in the water of Lake Biwa. In 1979, the Ordinance for Prevention of the Eutrophication of Lake Biwa was enacted as a measure to conserve the water quality of Lake Biwa. From 1980, in order to control the emission of nitrogen and phosphorus in the agricultural sector, efforts for clean and recycling agriculture such as proper use of fertilizer and prevention of turbid water release started.

- We have been promoting the “environment-friendly agriculture” to expand our efforts to preserve the environment in agriculture. In 2001, we established a system to certify agricultural products cultivated by the environment-friendly farming method of Lake Biwa as “environment-friendly farm products”, reducing the use of chemical fertilizers and synthetic pesticides to less than 50% of the usual amount. Currently, the cultivated area of "environment-friendly agricultural products” exceeds 14,000 hectares, accounting for 44% of the rice planted area. The percentage of the environmental conservation agriculture in the total cultivated area is the number 1.in all prefectures in Japan.

- As part of the promotion of environment-friendly agriculture, efforts to extend the mid- drying period to two weeks have been implemented on more than 10,000 hectares of paddy fields in order to reduce methane gas emissions from paddy fields. In addition, as part of efforts to prevent the outflow of agricultural turbid water that occurs during rice planting, we are promoting the demonstration of new technologies using GPS, etc. in model areas.

- As an initiative for ‘local production for local consumption’, we are promoting the "Oishiga Ureshiga Campaign", which promotes communication through conversation between producers and consumers. The number of food-related businesses that support the "local production for local consumption" initiative that handles agricultural products produced in the prefecture is increasing year by year. In recent years, we have also focused on promoting vegetable production. In the future, the theme will be how to connect this campaign to increased consumption of the prefecture's agricultural products, including horticultural crops other than rice.

(3) Kumamoto Prefecture - We have been promoting smart agriculture in dry-field crops, greenhouse horticulture and livestock farming, which comprises a leading production areas in Japan.

- As a result of proactively prompting farmland accumulation, the agriculture corporations handling over 100 hectares have been developed, promoting labor saving by smart agriculture such as effective use of drones for pest control. In the livestock sector, they use milk robots and implement the gazing management using ICT, promoting introduction of smart technology suitable for agriculture in our prefecture, aiming to become the “Next- generation agricultural advanced prefecture”.

- We are promoting efforts in line with the Agricultural Promotion Ordinance that nurtures groundwater and soil, such as promoting green agriculture and paddy field recharge that work on soil preparation and reduction of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

(4) Okinawa Prefecture - The "Okinawa SDGs Promotion Policy" was established to promote efforts to achieve SDGs in Okinawa Prefecture. In addition, the "21st Century Vision of Okinawa" was established as a prefectural target of the prospect of 2030. The ‘Basic Plan for 21st Century Vision of Okinawa’ has been promoting to realize the " 21st Century Vision of Okinawa ", in association with the "SGDs Basic Policy". Currently, we are studying a new basic plan, and we plan to formulate a new SDGs basic policy in conjunction with this.

- We have established the Okinawa SDGs Promotion Headquarters, which is led by the governor. Regarding the cooperation / collaboration systems, the Okinawa SDGs Partner System has been established to carry out dissemination and enlightenment activities, and 130 organizations have been registered so far.

- Regarding the Okinawa 21st Century Vision, the basic idea is to create a peaceful and prosperous Churashima in Okinawa that opens up the era, interacts with the world, and supports each other. We have established the 35 basic policies to realize that as well as 5 future ideal images that residents in Okinawa hope to achieve.

- Regarding these basic policies, we have implemented measures including conservation /regeneration of coral reefs and prevention of soil erosion from agricultural land as ‘conservation /regeneration /proper use of the natural environment’, planting windbreaks and constructing overseas conservation facilities as the ‘establishment of social risk safety net’, and developing production and supply systems and fostering young farmers as ‘improvement of agriculture, forestry and fisheries industry utilizing subtropical climate’. The agriculture, forestry and fisheries industry in Okinawa is positioned as a core industry as ‘industrial promotion and new development utilizing a characteristic of remote islands.’

- As a result of the efforts in the past, while the output of seasonal vegetables in winter and spring seasons and livestock products is increasing, we are facing various issues such as the disparity in farm income from the national average and the response to climate change such as typhoons.

- From the impact of COVID-19 infection and spread, the role of the agriculture, forestry and fisheries industry was reaffirmed that is responsible for food stability, and the importance of regional economic circulation was also reaffirmed. In establishing a new agriculture, forestry and fisheries promotion plan, we are aiming for sustainable agriculture, forestry and fisheries utilizing local resources and circulating local economy, in addition to increasing productivity and profitability.

Q. How do you involve local stakeholders such as consumers for enhancing their cooperation? - In order to promote local production for local consumption, we have set up the Support Desk for Local Production for Local Consumption, which provides one-stop support for consultations from food processors, distributors, retailers, producers, etc. In addition, we hold a ‘local production for local consumption business round-table conference’ where producers hold business talks with the commerce and industry and food processing manufacturers, providing information on foodstuffs and offering suitable match of supply and demand. We provide a certification of ‘local production for local consumption cooperation store’ to retail stores such as supermarkets that actively work on ‘local production for local consumption’.

- By studying the environment of Lake Biwa (Uminoko) in the fifth grade of elementary school, the citizens of the prefecture have been familiar with Lake Biwa since childhood. We started the "Oishiga Ureshiga" campaign because it would be nice if there was a mechanism that would allow us to know the place of origin at a glance. Initially, the action aimed to promote the production of horticultural items as well as the consumption of agricultural and marine products produced in the prefecture by implementing a campaign for a limited time. In addition, the logo mark uses only black, light blue, and red, and we devised a way to prevent printing costs from being incurred when private businesses participate. In addition, at the start of the campaign, the participation of the prefecture's largest supermarkets and the largest convenience stores has raised awareness among citizens, and the number of participating stores is still expanding steadily.

- Unified branding is implemented to expand sales channels for tomatoes, watermelons, and red beef, because our prefecture is one of the leading production areas for those products in Japan. In addition, we will strengthen sales of prefectural agricultural products in collaboration with different industries such as convenience stores.

- There is a certification system that certifies restaurants that convey the appeal of Okinawan ingredients as "Okinawa ingredients stores" by providing dishes that utilize Okinawan ingredients. 134 stores were certified in 2010 and expanded to 286 stores in 2018. To strengthen cooperation with the tourism industry, which is a leading industry in Okinawa, we will work on providing suitable ingredients for hotel operators as ‘matching’ and holding workshops. In addition, as part of food education and securing next-generation leaders, we hold fisheries classes for elementary and junior high school students and provide internship support for high school students. Furthermore, we contribute to food education by actively providing ingredients produced in the prefecture for school meals.