Fluctuations and Challenges in a Large-scale Upland Farming Area

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to describe how the information about trade negotiation and its countermeasures of TPP affected on the behaviors and decisions of large-scale upland farmers. In Tokachi Hokkaido, on which we focused, farmers have improved its productivity and reduced the production cost through production restructuring and expansion of production scale. Their activities are results of the response to the trade liberalization of agricultural products. However the impact of TPP on Tokachi upland farming is not clear, their investment for expansion of production scale and the introduction of new technologies are in progress. In this sense, the farmers' challenges to response to trade liberalization in large-scale upland farming area are not only for TPP. Their challenge can also be seen on the association of small business entrepreneurs of Tokachi. The division of farmers of the association is trying to strengthen the collaboration between major retailers of not only domestic market but also the market in Asian countries. Those are remarkable activities.