The Changes of Post-World War II Reclaimed Land and the Role of Agricultural Leader in Nishi-Shirakawa-Kogen, Fukushima Prefecture

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  • 福島県西白河高原における戦後開拓地の変容と開拓指導者の果たした役割
  • フクシマケン ニシシラカワ コウゲン ニ オケル センゴ カイタクチ ノ ヘンヨウ ト カイタク シドウシャ ノ ハタシタ ヤクワリ

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Abstract

In 1945, the Shirakawa Hotoku Agricultural Coop was reclaimed in the Nishi-Shirakawa-Kogen area of Fukushima Prefecture, northeastern Japan. Kanji Kato, an agricultural leader, taught the migrants of the area how to manage farms consisting of reclaimed land. Although the harsh conditions of the area (volcanic ash soil, high-altitude and low temperatures) were not conductive to agriculture, Kato himself showed the farmers how to fertilize the effectively grow their crops. The Hotoku district farmers consisted primarily of young men in their 20's were new to the area and familiarly unrelated. They were also novices to agriculture. Kato organized this area into cooperative farms that were managed jointly. The Yuigahara district, on the other hand, was made up of experienced farmers in their 40 s. In this area, Kato encouraged individual management. In the 1950's, as the agricultural base became established, the Hotoku district's cooperative farms were broken up into smaller blocks as a step toward eventual individual management. Yasuhiko Kato, Kanji's son and also his successor, changed the main focus of the agricultural association from self-sufficiency farming to the production of potatoes and dairy products. This was to maintain the community under the rapid national economic growth of Japan at that time. Thus at this time, the self-sufficiency and communal management style put forth by Kanji Kato was changed to a more functional and commercial style. This change in goals accelerated the appearance of large dairy farmers and on the other hand, increasing the number of part-time farm workers increased in the 1980's. The letting out and borrowing of farm land among settlers maintained the agricultural community. Finally, the author points out the significant role that these two men played in the development of reclaimed land in Nishi-Shirakawa-Kogen after World War II, Japan.

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