Toward consumer-participatory utilization of urban farmland: Case of allotment gardens
2009
Ohe, Y.(Chiba Univ., Matsudo (Japan))
This paper examined the policy framework of allotment gardens in Japan especially focusing on the type of gardens wherein farmers offer technical assistance to those contracted consumers who conduct farming on farmers' land from the perspective of consumer participatory farmland management. We also examined model cases from which we can learn in seeking further development of the consumer participatory utilization of urban farmland. This type of allotment garden in Japan was born to meet the need for farming recreation by urbanites and is considered to be an effective method to ensure sustainable utilization and preservation of urban farmland. This is because a moratorium of inheritance tax for farm successors will be imposed by the national tax authority when farm succession occurs in areas zoned for control of urbanization while this moratorium on inheritance tax is not condoned for ordinary farmland use in urban areas where urbanization is being promoted. This moratorium is crucial for preservation of urban farmland because farm successors must pay a huge amount of inheritance tax, which often forces them to sell their entire farmland holdings for the settlement of the tax. We, then, looked into a pioneering case whereby a farmer and urban consumers jointly run a corporate farm. Such a case indicates that distinction between farmers and consumers is becoming obscure and farmland preservation and utilization are conducted not by farmers alone, but with the collaboration of citizens. This new trend of a consumer participatory way of farmland management will increase in importance in the future because of the acceleration of aging and of the decrease in the farm population. Therefore, a more comprehensive policy framework should be addressed that establishes a mode of consumer participatory farmland management on a nationwide basis.
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