"Nice-Looking Girls" Branding Strategy And Other Tales From Rural Japan

The Japan Times has found a new trend - young people are getting interested in farming and discovering novel ways to make ends meet:

Nahoko Takahashi, 27, who grows rice and vegetables in Yamagata
Prefecture has been training female university students for two years.
Giving them the opportunity to experience the pleasure of farming has reinforced
her belief that women can play a big role in changing the industry's image. This
spring, Takahashi will launch a "young women's only farm."

"Women are sensitive to the latest trends. I think we can breathe new
life into agriculture," said Takahashi, who will run the new farm with
"nice-looking girls" and take advantage of this branding strategy when selling
their products in Tokyo. To start with, she has secured a hectare of land to
grow sweet tomatoes in five different colors — orange, yellow, red, green and
black — and rice. She plans to use herbal medicines as fertilizer, the latest
thing in farming.

Sounds really good to me, hope they do well. There is also the National Liaison Council of Rural Youth Clubs, which plans to publish a stylish farming magazine targeting readers under 35, called Agrizm. It will feature the life stories of young farmers, is expected to hit bookstores and convenience stores nationwide in June. I think I will label that as progress!

The Japan Times: Young People See Future In Farming

Comments

Pandabonium said…
"young women's only farm" - there's 'B' movie title for you. ;^)

That there are young people getting into farming in Japan is good news. We're going to need them.
Tom O said…
Can we foresee a remake of the 50s movie 'Tokyo Story'. 'Bunka no monogatari' - where a couple travel to their adult children's remote farm and find discover their offspring are far too busy with ploughing, sourcing organic seeds, busy at the 'fertility' festivals, discussing planning rotation, general mucking in to be interested in dads' new spaceage mobile or mum's 20 megapixel multipurpose camera, or how wonderful the Nozomi trip was from the city...
Tom O said…
Gomen, word should just be 'discover', not find..!
Martin J Frid said…
Sounds like a great film idea!
Pandabonium said…
We have Tôkyô monogatari on DVD. Great film. And an excellent proposal for a new twist on the plot, Tom.

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