Abstract
Agricultural land is, of course, a critical element in food production, which is the essential energy supplier for the sustenance of human life. Consequently, a decrease in arable land, coupled with an increase in the abandonment of farming as an occupation in Japan, will have a decidedly negative impact on the future outlook for food production. The current framework of the agricultural land use system in Japan and correlated problems is covered in this study. Reference is made to the case of the Chinese system of farmland use, which is based on a completely different system than the Japanese one and is heavily influenced by geopolitics. Selected cases of the European and American agricultural land use systems are also referenced and recommended as being the models for contemporary Japan. Finally, necessary changes in the Japanese agricultural land use system are proposed, with said proposals being the primary purpose of this paper.
