CRAZYTANK News vol.213／The “ultimate corn” site, where the crisis in agriculture was properly felt
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CRAZYTANK News vol.213
In no time at all, we have reached the end of August. Looking at the date alone, we feel that summer is almost over, but when we go outside, we are reminded that it will be a while before we can feel the autumn season.
Now, in this week's newsletter, we would like to rethink our sense value of the future crisis and its connection to our actions, while also reporting on the “Corn Season Summer Festival to Taste the Ultimate Corn” event we recently held for our 保けん野菜（Hoken Yasai) Service subscribers.
Please read on.
The “ultimate corn” site, where the crisis in agriculture was properly felt
The other day, following last year's event, we held the “Corn Season Summer Festival,” an original 保けん野菜（Hoken Yasai) event to taste the “ultimate corn.
Please check out the 保けん野菜（Hoken Yasai) Blog for more information about the event!
*The following is the report of the Extraordinary General Meeting of the Corn Season held last year in 2023.
This year, in order to taste the “ultimate corn,” we served “corn sashimi” freshly picked in the field, simply with salt and soy sauce.
The event was also an opportunity to taste and experience corn in its different forms (steamed, grilled, and shaved ice) from multiple perspectives, while enjoying the stories behind the alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks that were paired with the corn.
We hope the following photos will give you a glimpse of the day's activities.
This year, again, the ultimate corn, as pictured above, is extremely tasty! Delightful! Of course we enjoyed it. ......
Not only that, but it was a very thought-provoking meeting.
For example, first of all, the fields.
Last year, this event was held on August 14, but this year, even though it was held on August 16, almost the same date, the condition of the fields was very different.
It may be a little difficult to tell the difference from the photos (plus the corn was harvested earlier this year and it was late in the harvest season), but the overall impression was that the leaves and stems were affected by the heat.
Originally, a year ago, we were surprised to hear the following fact at last year's corn season event.
”If you calculate corn on its own, it is an unprofitable vegetable.”
Since we heard about this, we have become more and more aware that corn produced by organic farmers like NORAKURA Farm, who grow without chemical fertilizers and farmers who are particular about soil preparation, is “precious and cannot be guaranteed to be eaten next year,” and when we saw this field, we felt that awareness strengthened again.
Before going out in the corn field, Ms. Akiyama, representative of Michikusa LLC, which operates 保けん野菜（Hoken Yasai) , gave this talk to the participants along with a video message from Mr. Hagiwara, representative of NORAKURA Farm.
・Corn is a vegetable that can only be shipped for three weeks in the summer.
・It is a loss-making department no matter how you look at it.
・This year, the farm doubled the area of corn planted last year, with the intention of doing something that would please the customers who receive the vegetable sets, even if it would not be profitable on its own.
・The hot weather caused a lot of insect infestation, and the corn we had grown was damaged by insects.
・Corn is a favorite of civets, raccoons, and deer. We are taking every precaution to prevent this.
・Even so, the percentage of corn that can be shipped is 50% of the total.
After hearing about the “reality of corn cultivation,” we went into the field...
We were told that corn that had been eaten by animals and corn that was not ready for shipment was lying everywhere (although we were also told that this would be used as nutrients for the next field). It is impossible not to think of the people who are cultivating the crops while dealing with this environment every day.
We moved from the field to a facility called “Mori no Jikan” (Time in the Forest), just a nose away from NORAKURA Farms, for a deeper taste of the “ultimate corn.
While the participants were enjoying the corn story pairings and steamed and grilled corn, Mr. Hagiwara, a representative of NORAKURA Farms, took time out of his work schedule to visit us. We had the opportunity to hear directly from him about the reality of corn cultivation.
He also asked farmers in other areas, “How are you surviving growing corn?” . However, all of the farmers said that corn has not found a way to cope with this heat.
As we observed their fields and listened to their stories in more depth, we once again felt a chill down our backs as we realized that a “crisis in domestic agriculture” was looming.
There are still farmers who produce vegetables that are both safe and delicious at a very high level, even from a global perspective, and who have the spirit of “Of course it is important to calculate income and expenditures, but I want to deliver vegetables that will please my customers” and “I continue farming because I like and enjoy the work”.
However, the extremely hot weather that everyone is experiencing, changes in the farming environment related to climate change, soaring material prices, and a shortage of workers, all of which make it clear that the farming industry in Japan is in a tough situation.
Many farmers have told Mr. Hagiwara that they have decided to close their farms or that, to be honest, it may be difficult for them to continue farming....
When we hear about this situation, we think that even those of us in the position of consumers have a responsibility to think of ways in which each of us can take action with a sense of purpose. We think it is important to take some concrete action in order to create a way for truly valuable farmers who are diligently and properly engaged in agriculture to continue to do so.
If any of you reading this newsletter would like to start something, or would like to become more involved in this issue yourself, we would like to hear from you.
In November, a meeting will be held by Ms. Akiyama of Michikusa LLC, to learn from each other about “doing agriculture,” based on the sense of crisis felt by Mr. Hagiwara of NORAKURA Farm. Our CEO, Mr. Takehana, will be a special guest speaker at the “Discussion Session” on the second day of the meeting.
We hope to discuss what concrete actions we can take to ensure the continuation of “future agriculture” while overcoming the various waves of social change that may occur in the future.
In addition, we hope to find a path of hope as we work on what we can do, one by one, as a party through the “保けん野菜（Hoken Yasai)” service, and as we move forward with specific activities.
We are also working on the “Ultimate Vegetable” project, which is currently under consideration as part of the 保けん野菜（Hoken Yasai) initiative, in the hope that it will serve as a path of hope for the future of agriculture.
We have already heard that this year's corn shipment from NORAKURA Farms has been completed, and we will continue to consider various approaches and actions in the hope that we will be able to taste the ultimate corn again next year.
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