Japanese food distribution and agricultural markets have been reorganized as a result of deregulation and globalization. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the character of this reorganization and to discuss the impacts on agricultural structure. The contents of the reorganization are as follows: 1) The existent food distributors have been divided into a few large-scale ones and a large number of small-scale ones. The former have expanded their own food distribution business, but the latter ones have been concerned with bankruptcy. 2) Major general trading companies, which have recently entered into the rice distribution business, have also expanded their own food distribution business. 3) The large-scale distributors and the general trading companies are transacting with supermarkets, food processing and service industries as main customers. 4) Such large-scale companies have taken the initiative regarding reorganization of the food distribution system and strengthened their pricing power over food and agricultural commodities. Under the reorganization, the prices of agricultural commodities have continued to be reduced. And a few large farmers have furthermore enlarged their acreage with intend to improve their income. But they have not been able to achieve their purpose, because the degree of price reduction has exceeded their efforts in cost cutting. If these conditions persist, Japanese agricultural structure will be encounter breakup and Japanese rural area will come to be dotted with only a few capital-intensive farming corporations.

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