This paper aims to clarify the regional characteristics of soy sauce production and palatability in Japan. The results obtained in this paper are summarized as follows:
1) Chiba and Hyogo prefectures are two main soy sauce producing areas. The soy sauce brewers in Chiba prefecture have an overwhelming market share in the Kanto region. The brewers in Hyogo prefecture dominate the share of the market in Kansai region. Chiba and Hyogo's brewer have low market share of soy sauce in the other regions.
2) In general the popular types of soy sauce are Koikuchi (deep colour), Tokkyu (high quality), and Hon-jyozo (natural brew). In the Tohoku, Hokuriku, Chugoku and Kyusyu regions, however Koikuchi which is made in Shinshiki-jyozo (a chemical production) method and the grades soy sauce which exception of Tokkyu grade are popular. This is the result that the consumer chose the soy sauce by their preferences.
3) In accordance with the characteristics of soy sauce's production and distribution in Japan, classified 47 prefectures into three categories; (1) “self-sufficient” type, (2) “importer and exporter balance” type, (3) “dependent on soy sauce produced outside of the prefecture” type.

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This paper discusses the background of the introduction of subdivided land use system of grassland in a pastoral region of Inner Mongolia, and its concomitant change in the stock farming and grassland use based on a case study at Huhtolgai Region, Showlonchagan Country located in central Inner Mongolia.
Stock farming in the Autonomous Region has grown since the government's implementation of reform and open-door policy and family farm contract system. Meanwhile, grassland degradation has gradually expanded as a result of agricultural development and increase in the number of livestock. Sustainable development of stock farming is now facing difficulty because of shortage of grassland. In 1998, the Inner Mongolian government abolished a communal grassland use system and introduced subdivided grassland use system. It is aimed that individual control of pastoral land in subdivided grassland would ensure more sustainable growth of stock farming and protection of the grassland. Under this system, grasslands are leased out to each household for term of 30 years. The acreage of the leased grassland was decided based on the number of household members and owned livestock. Due to the introduction of this system, fertile lands in flatland area are subdivided for individual use. These subdivided lands were soon fenced by steel wire by the owner. On the other hand, hilly lands with poor vegetations are deserted as communal land. The lands have devastated because of the lack of proper land management system.
Moreover, gaps began to appear in the size of the owned grassland among the stock farmers along with the gaps among the households in the economic and managerial success, and it lead to more competition rather than sense of cooperation. With the widespread of market economy, stock farmers have become more interested in raising their income, and they have expanded their business by two ways, extend the grass land and increase in the number of livestock by borrowing in trust. At the same time they have increased goats responded to the development of cashmere industry, a drastic change into more profitable domestic livestock. The number of cattle in trust has spurred to increase because of prohibition of stock farming in adjacent agricultural regions.
All these brought the increase of burdens in the use of grassland particularly in the communal land that is over-grazed without any restriction and control. This is the reason why communal land is most vulnerable to the degradation.

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