AgChem Article

Advancement of Agricultural Technology and Reorganization of Agrochemical Market

Pesticide use in agriculture requires appropriate information and regulatory oversight. As such, in many countries, the public sector as well as the agricultural cooperatives have played a major role in the farmer level dissemination of practical technology and information for pest control. However, many of the transnational chemical companies also have an aggressive involvement in the agrochemical market, appealing to their technological and marketing power as dominant pesticide developers and manufacturers. In recent years, environmental regulatory policy and commercialization of biotechnology (i.e. genetically modified food and feed) have triggered reorganization and consolidation in the global agrochemical industry. Some of transnational chemical companies have strengthened their presence in the fields of agricultural production in substitution for the public and cooperative extension programs; their strategy as an agribusiness being to integrate the related markets and control both local and global agriculture. Japan is no exception to this rule, though there are other actors such as general trading companies and indigenous pesticide manufacturers also influencing the market. In this thesis I have presented an analysis of the situation of the Japanese agrochemical market and have considered the implications for the role of public and cooperative sectors.