Maintenance Strategies of the Broiler Meat Production Area in North Tohoku against the Increase in Imported Chickens

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to clarify how the agricultural production areas in peripheral Japan can continue to maintain themselves against of the increase in imported agricultural products, taking the case of the broiler meat production area in North Tohoku. After the late 1980s, the broiler raising farmers in North Tohoku expanded their production scales remarkably such that their annual production per farmer became the largest in Japan. As a result, the broiler production area in North Tohoku has continued with a stable production regime despite an increase in imported chickens after 1986. This paper examines the maintenance strategies of the broiler production area in North Tohoku, following two lines of investigation. Firstly, the role of broiler processors (or local integrators) in the restructuring of the broiler production area. Secondly, the effect of broiler processors' collecting and shipping strategies against the force of increasing imported chickens. The results of this analysis are summarized as follows.In relation to the first point, the characteristics of the broiler processors in North Tohoku were examined. The broiler processors in North Tohoku have been independent of the general trading and feed firms, and have had control of the restructuring of the broiler production area in North Tohoku. In particular, the three largest processors in North Iwate (processor A, B, and C) have increased the number of collected broilers after 1986. Moreover, the farmers' production scales have been remarkably differentiated in North Iwate, where the three largest processors have incorporated their affiliated farmers. Consequently, it would appear that the three largest processors have played a very important role in the expansion of farmers' production scales in North Tohoku. In short, it is clear that some of the broiler processors in North Iwate have contributed to the restructuring of the broiler production area in North Tohoku, as the local integrators.In relation to the second point, the broiler collecting strategies of the broiler processors in North Tohoku were examined. It is clear that the three largest processors have promoted the expansion of farmers' production scales by using three collecting strategies; adoption of a commission system with the farmers, introduction of open chicken sheds and systematization of the broiler collecting operators. These changes mean that the contract raising which farmers own the land, labor, and chicken shed is difficult for the processors to expand these farmers' production scales. Similarly, the broiler shipping strategies of the broiler processors in North Tohoku were examined. Every processor ships the broiler products to Hokkaido, Tohoku and the Kanto market strategically, where the quantity of chickens purchased has increased rapidly after 1975. Eventually, the broiler processors in North Tohoku were able to expand their farmers' production scales, because they used shipping strategies that were adapted for the spatial changes in chicken market structure after the mid-1970s.After all, the broiler processors in North Tohoku were able to continue their production despite increasing chicken imports, by overcoming the disadvantages of the agricultural production areas in peripheral Japan (such as dependence on the general trading and feed firms, limitation in expanding production scale, and dependence on remote markets). In particular, the expansion of farmer's production scale by introducing of commission farming is a very effective strategy to resist the forces of international competition. However, from the viewpoint of vertical integration, the broiler processors in North Tohoku promoted the expansion of farmers' production scales by partial ownership of farmers' production equipments.