Freedom of Food or Justice of Food?

Rationality and Poverty in Quality of Food in the Arguments on the Staple Food Problem in Karafuto and Other Borderlands in the Japanese Empire

Abstract

This paper discussed "poverty in quality of food" as limitations of options. In Karafuto, one of the colonies of the Japanese empire, a part of the colonial elites appealed to the people to change their staple food from rice to other crops which they could produce under the climate condition of Karafuto. In Hokkaido, Manchukuo and even the main-lands, it is possible to find the similar discourses and attempts though Japanese people had called their country "Toyoashihara-Mizhuho-no-kuni (the country abundant rice)" and regarded rice as the precious food for a long time. The reason of those discourses and attempts was an unrationality of eating rice as the staple food in each land. They justified "poverty in quality of food" by political and economic rationality. Such phenomena have appeared in the premodern era as well as in the modern era. In addition, that will appear at the present day. For instance, some people avoid eating any meat because of their ecological stances. That behavior is "poverty in quality of food" derived from a private principle. However, it can turn to be "justice of food" when they justify their behavior as a rational behavior for ecology and insist that it should be one of the public standards. "Justice of food" which demands the people "poverty in quality of food" can appear without an official oppression. It will appear with social oppressions such as "atmosphere censorship". It is one of the present issues to which we should give priority; "freedom of food" or "justice of food", the right of self-definition of food or "poverty in quality of food". Studies on agricultural history can contribute the historical experiences to this issue.