How Japan integrates circular rice farming into fashion

Japan has been concerned about agricultural decline for years. Rice production, in particular, keeps decreasing due to the westernization of dietary patterns among Japanese people. The annual rice consumption per person has decreased to 50.7kg in 2020 from 95.1kg in 1970. Some people are concerned about losing a beautiful landscape with rice fields as well as our traditional diet. In recent years, some companies have developed new businesses in the fashion and beauty fields to preserve such scenery and our tradition.

Fermenstation utilizes fallow rice fields and produces beauty items

The Japanese startup, Fermenstation, aims to build a more circular society by utilizing unused resources with their fermentation technology. They started producing organic rice in cooperation with local farmers to use fallow rice fields in Iwate Prefecture about 10 years ago. Fallow fields can generate pests that negatively affect surrounding areas. Fermenstation transforms organic rice into ethanol which is USDA and COSMOS certified. The brand secures its traceability and informs customers of all the production processes from planting.

Furthermore, Fermenstation uses lees for their beauty items and livestock feed. The manure of this livestock is transformed into fertilizer to achieve zero waste and sustainable farming. They are also making products with food waste.

Snow Peak passes on traditions through locally made clothing and experiential tours

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The Japanese outdoor brand, Snow Peak, developed the Local Wear Project, in which they make clothing by incorporating local materials and traditional techniques developed in each area to preserve the local economy. They aim to produce such clothing in all prefectures and started the project in Sado city in Niigata Prefecture by a chance encounter with a rice farmer.

Sado has beautiful rice terraces, which are step-wise rice fields made on sloping lands. In fact, Sado was registered on the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage list in 2011. It is impossible to use agricultural machines in these fields, which means it takes more time and effort than standard rice farming. For this reason, Sado’s rice is especially high quality and costs more.

To convey the farmer’s effort and thought, Snow Peak simultaneously started offering experiential programs called, “Local Wear Tourism.” In the programs in Sado, participants can experience planting or harvesting rice and learn traditions through communication with local people. This can remind us that valuable cultures and traditional industries are rooted in local communities.

Cross-industrial cooperation is an effective way to preserve valuable traditions

There are various ways to support the local economy and communities. As these companies approach the issue from different industries, they can involve more people, including those unconcerned about the issue. Such projects are expected to increase and soon expand to other fields.