Information and Communication Technology in Agriculture: Adoption Process in Cucumber Production in Nishio City, Aichi Prefecture

Abstract

In Japan, an increasing number of producers are using information and communication technology (ICT) in agriculture. Various actors are involved in the adoption of new technologies such as ICT in agriculture. To analyze the interactions of those actors, we used the agricultural innovation system approach in this study. The function of intermediary role-players was noted. While technology is utilized by producers, it is improved in accordance with the agricultural practices of the local area. Therefore, attention was paid to the process of technological adaptations according to the agricultural practices in specific areas.

Based on the above, this study aimed to clarify how ICT in agriculture is adopted in production areas, focusing on the function of intermediaries, i.e., agricultural cooperatives at the local and the regional levels, and the spatiality of networks. The case study was a cucumber production area in Nishio, Aichi prefecture, where a business and cultivation management system (Akisai developed by Fujitsu) was introduced.

The results are summarized as follows: 1) As an intermediary, the Aichi Prefectural Economic Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives (at the regional level) connected organizations outside the production area with cucumber producers inside it and facilitated the provision of resources to the producers. 2) As an intermediary, the Nishimikawa Agricultural Cooperative (at the local level) transferred knowledge on the Akisai system to cucumber producers in face-to-face meetings to increase the number of Akisai users inside the production area and enable them to use it continuously and effectively. 3) In the production area, the Nishimikawa Agricultural Cooperative and Aichi Prefectural Economic Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives, together with the Cucumber Producers Group and Fujitsu, continuously improved the Akisai system to make it more adaptable to prevailing agricultural practices. The Nishimikawa Agricultural Cooperative played a central role in this process from beginning to end.