KAMIMOMI, Japan (AP) — In the remote village of Kamimomi in Japan’s western Okayama prefecture, a small group of rice farmers began their most recent harvest in sweltering heat, two weeks sooner than ...

KUMAGAYA, Japan, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Grappling with a rice shortage after extreme weather ravaged last year's crop, Japan is hoping new heat-resistant varieties of its staple food can help stave off ...

Whether it’s posting pictures of him eating gyudon (beef bowl) between meetings or holding rice balls at campaign stops, Shinjiro Koizumi has worked hard to portray himself as a regular Tokyoite. The ...

Japan's rice exports hit a fresh record high in 2025. But they grew at a slower pace, as the high price of home-grown rice ...

ASAHIKAWA, Japan — Nobuo Kubo inherited his rice farm four decades ago, becoming the third generation in his family to look after the lush fields at the base of Mount Daisetsu. The pristine snowmelt ...

TOKYO (AP) — Rice is essential to Japanese culture, tradition and politics. People take pride in the oval-shaped sticky Japonica grain, which is still a staple even though total consumption has fallen ...

A farmer operates harvester machine on a rice terrace during harvest in Kamimomi village, Okayama prefecture, Japan on Sept. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill) KAMIMOMI, Japan (AP) — In the remote ...

Shinjiro Koizumi, agriculture minister of Japan, eats a rice ball during his visit to a rice farm in Sugito, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, on Wednesday, July 9, 2025. Credit - Soichiro Koriyama—Getty ...

A rice field in Mito, Japan, where farmers are being encouraged to grow more of the staple crop to make up for shortages on store shelves, on Wednesday, May 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Elaine Kurtenbach) ...