Prime Minister Naoto Kan attended the third Senior Vice-Ministers' Meeting of the Council for the Realization of the Revival of the Food, Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishery Industries held at the Prime Minister's Office.

During the meeting, there were hearings with experts as well as exchange of opinions.

The Prime Minister said in his opening address, "I have visited vegetable farmers in Chiba Prefecture and rice farmers in Yamagata Prefecture, and learned many lessons. I think there are two major points concerning the realization of the revival of the food, agriculture, forestry, and fishery industries.

One is the problems inherent in Japan's agricultural sector today. The most representative being that the current average age of the people engaged in agriculture is 66, raising the question of how we could revive the agricultural sector. At the same time, there are great possibilities in the sector as Japanese food is highly appreciated outside Japan.
Another point is considering what kinds of problems we must be prepared for as we proceed with the liberalization of trade. For example, since before the free trade agreement (FTA) with the United States entered into force, the Republic of Korea (ROK) had been providing various allowances to the people in the agricultural sector, and succeeded in winning their understanding to a large extent.
I am earnestly looking forward to hearing opinions from various perspectives."