Research & reports

農林水産省 · 農林水産省 · Japan

According to MAFF's community garden survey results as of the end of March 2025, Japan has 4,273 community gardens with 188,713 plots covering 1,284 hectares nationwide. By operator type, local governments run 1,977, agricultural cooperatives 414, farmers 1,433, and companies/NPOs 449.

東京都環境局 · 東京都環境局 · Japan

This Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of Environment page describes the Green Space Plan Notification System, which requires developers building or expanding structures on sites of 1,000 m2 or more (250 m2 or more for national/local government sites) to file a green space plan and meet a minimum greening standard, under the ordinance on nature protection and restoration in Tokyo. The system aims to restore lost green space and mitigate the urban heat island effect, requiring prior consultation and post-completion reporting.

東京都環境局 · 東京都環境局 · Japan

This Tokyo Metropolitan Government Bureau of Environment page compiles and publishes rooftop, wall, and balcony greening results based on green space plan filings from FY2000 through FY2024. The page text itself does not state cumulative totals; detailed figures are provided separately in downloadable Excel and PDF result tables.

Nakata Taichi, Naoyuki Nakahama, Nobuko Ohmido, Atushi Ushimaru · Ecology and Evolution · Japan (Kyoto–Osaka–Kobe)

In Japan's Kyoto–Osaka–Kobe megacity, the genetic diversity and structure of 24 Commelina communis populations were investigated across diverse habitat types, including rural agricultural land, urban agricultural land, urban park land, and urban roadsides. The establishment of diverse habitat types through urbanization was found to have no impact on C. communis genetic diversity and little impact on its genetic structure. This is likely due to the plant's high selfing rate and ability to adapt to urban conditions.

Chika Takatori, Yulu ZHENG, S.M. Asik Ullah · Urban and Regional Planning Review · Japan

This research proposed a spatial design framework for urban open and green spaces in Japan, focusing on urban agriculture amidst a declining and aging farming population. The study first analyzed and mapped the supply of land available for urban agriculture using GIS, population mesh data, and interviews. Secondly, it calculated and mapped the spatial distribution of demand for urban agriculture based on surveys and statistical information. Finally, a framework was constructed to compare, evaluate, and match the supply and demand of urban agriculture.

千島土地株式会社 · 千島土地株式会社 · Japan

Chishima Land Co. launched the 'Kitakagaya Creative Farm Project' in 2011 in Suminoe Ward, Osaka, and opened 'Minna no Uen Kitakagaya' (Farm No. 2, at Kitakagaya 5-2-29) the following year, 2012. Conceived as a way to activate vacant land for community revitalization, the urban farm combines art and agriculture and emphasizes communication among participants; it is currently operated by the general incorporated association Goodluck.

農林水産省 · 農林水産省 · Japan

This MAFF document chronicles the institutional history of urban farmland policy in Japan. The 1968 City Planning Act (Showa 43) defined 'urbanization promotion areas' (shigaika kuiki) as areas that should be urbanized preferentially and systematically within roughly 10 years. In 1970 an Agricultural Land Act revision changed farmland conversion in these areas from a permit system to a notification system, and in 1972 fixed asset tax began being assessed at residential-land rates on farmland there. The 1974 Productive Green Space Act (Seisan Ryokuchi Ho) exempted farmland designated as productive green space from that residential-rate taxation, and a 1975 inheritance-tax deferral system (with a 20-year deferral period) was created. In 1991, the tax deferral for the three major metropolitan areas' designated cities was narrowed to apply only to productive green space.

東京都 · 東京都例規集 · Japan

Article 6 of the enforcement rules for the Tokyo nature protection ordinance sets the detailed greening standards: ground-level greening must cover 0.2-0.35 times (site area minus building footprint), depending on site size (Appended Table 2); building-top (rooftop) greening must cover 0.2-0.35 times the rooftop area (Appended Table 4); street-facing greening ratios range from 3/10 to 8/10 (Appended Table 3); and planting density is set at 1 tall tree, 2 medium trees, and 3 shrubs per 10 sqm. Enacted in 2001, most recently amended in March 2024.

国土交通省 · 国土交通省 · Japan

MLIT's national survey of rooftop and wall greening construction results for FY2023 found about 15.7 hectares of new rooftop greening (roughly three Tokyo Domes) and 5.0 hectares of new wall greening that year, bringing the cumulative totals since FY2000 to about 615 hectares of rooftop greening and 125 hectares of wall greening. The survey was mailed to 560 companies nationwide with 284 responses (a 50.7% response rate).

国土交通省 · 国土交通省 · Japan

On 14 February 2023, Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) reported that, based on a survey of 199 municipalities nationwide, 8,282 ha (89.3%) of the 9,273 ha of Productive Green Zones designated in 1992 — about 80% of all Productive Green Zone area — had been redesignated as Special Productive Green Zones ahead of their 30-year deadline. The remaining 991 ha (10.7%) were not redesignated.

国土交通省 · 国土交通省 · Japan

According to this December 11, 2023 announcement by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, approximately 15.6 hectares of green roofs and 4.4 hectares of green walls were newly installed nationwide in FY2022. Cumulative installations from FY2000 through FY2022 (23 years) reached about 597 hectares of green roofs and 119 hectares of green walls (FY2021 and FY2022 figures are provisional).

Alice Covatta, Vedrana Ikalović · Sustainability · Japan (Tokyo)

This paper examines design strategies for transforming leftover urban spaces by integrating creative and playful programs, using Tokyo, Japan, as a case study. Through ethnographic observations and spatial analysis, the study demonstrates how play positively affects everyday life in public spaces and enables extraordinary uses of these spaces. The findings offer guidance for urban planners and designers on how people use playfulness to appropriate and utilize leftover spaces.

肇 石原 · Institutional Repositories DataBase (IRDB) · Japan

This study examines trends in Japan following the enactment of the Urban Agriculture Promotion Basic Law in April 2015, focusing on the conversion of residential land to agricultural land. In Osaka City's Joto-ku, former residential land has been maintained as a rental farm since 2019. Additionally, Tokyo Metropolitan Government (from 2017) and Kobe City Office (from 2021) have implemented subsidy measures for such conversions. These recent movements, reversing the historical trend of agricultural land becoming residential, are still in their infancy.

Hiroshi Kurose · Toshi keikaku hokokushu/Toshi keikaku houkokushuu · Japan (Hiroshima)

This paper examines the necessary perspectives for local governments to introduce the productive green space system, using Hiroshima City's 2020 implementation as a case study. It reviews the current state of urban agriculture and inheritance issues in Hiroshima, clarifies the requirements for productive green spaces and their relationship with agricultural cooperatives, and discusses future directions for city planning that coexists with agriculture.

Yosuke Masuda, Takashi Oka, Erika Yoshinari, Takaaki Nishida, Tadashi Ikeda · Ecological research monographs · Japan

This research collected eight types of administrative plans from local governments across Japan related to the multifunctionality of farmland and reviewed the extent to which they describe these functions. Findings revealed that farmland's multifunctionality was incorporated into many municipal plans, with municipalities of a certain population size and high financial strength index tending to mention these roles more frequently. However, descriptions of functions like "disaster mitigation and response" and "water and food supply" in times of disaster were less common.

· JAcom 農業協同組合新聞（一般社団法人農協協会） · Japan

A December 2021 survey by Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism found that among 199 municipalities with productive green zones (seisan ryokuchi) designated in 1992 (total 9,412 ha), 86% (8,048 ha) had already been, or were expected to be, redesignated as "specified productive green zones," which extend agricultural preservation and tax benefits beyond the original 30-year period. 7% of landowners had no intention to redesignate, and another 7% were undecided. Tokyo had the highest redesignation rate at 92% (2,227 ha), followed by Saitama (85%), Chiba (87%), Kanagawa (87%), Aichi (75%), Kyoto (87%), Osaka (85%), Hyogo (87%), and Nara (87%).

東京都都市整備局 · 東京都都市整備局 (Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Bureau of Urban Development) · Japan

A section of the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Urban Development's case study collection on its comprehensive green-space policy, describing Nerima Ward's 'disaster-cooperation farmland' scheme, under which farmers agree by covenant (since 1996) to let their land be used in a major disaster for evacuation space, temporary housing sites, equipment storage, or fresh food supply. Citing MAFF data, it states that as of 31 March 2020, 76 municipalities across 8 prefectures in Japan's three major metropolitan areas had similar programs covering 1,353 hectares. It also notes that because the agreements are not legally binding, proactive use led by local government is difficult.

Izumi ARAKAWA, Noriko Akita · Journal of The Japanese Institute of Landscape Architecture · Japan (Tokyo)

This study identified the characteristics of local plan policies based on the Basic Law for Urban Agricultural Promotion, formulated by local governments. The survey covered 310 local governments in 11 prefectures across three major Metropolitan areas. Tokyo had a large number of local governments formulating local plans and implementing various policies, with differences observed between cities and wards. "Branding of agricultural products" was one policy independently formulated, while "Promotion of agricultural cooperation between rural and urban areas" was not adopted by any local government.

Takeshi So · The Japanese Journal of Real Estate Sciences · Japan

This study discusses urban agriculture in Japan from three perspectives: suburban farming, urban farming, and isolated farming operations within urban areas. Despite its historical impact on urban planning, urban farmland has dramatically decreased and currently hinders real estate business and new business creation. It is suggested that economic rationality and public interest should be prioritized, and tax incentives for urban farmland should be reconsidered in a stepwise manner.

Seiichiro Shiozawa · The Japanese Journal of Real Estate Sciences · Japan

This study examined the "2022 problem" in Japan, concerning the potential mass conversion of farmland designated as Production Green Space into residential land. It notes that these concerns have receded due to legal amendments and system establishment following the 2016 Basic Law for the Promotion of Urban Agriculture. The study suggests that future urban development should utilize urban farmland to increase regional value, proposing three key actions: establishing cooperation between urban farmers and residents, creating district-specific community development systems, and promoting appropriate land use.

Keshav Chandra · Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research · Japan

In Japanese agriculture, women's participation is progressively increasing, and there is a close relationship between attracting youth to agriculture and achieving food self-sufficiency. Urban agriculture is developing as a new trend in Japan. New trends such as organic farms, robotics agro, urban agriculture, and increasing women's participation are emerging, which can accelerate the pace of agricultural development in Japan.

Shingo YOSHIDA · Institutional Repositories DataBase (IRDB) · Japan

This study examined the interaction between farm development and diversification in 18 peri-urban farms in Japan's Kanto region. Farm structural diversification was categorized into four types: highly diversified, complementary enterprise, search and selection, and non-diversified. Farms exhibiting entrepreneurship, management skills, and active social networks achieved development across all categories. Diversification in highly diversified and search & selection types interacted with the internal farm environment, but had little impact on management in complementary enterprise types.

Akira Tabayashi, Toshio Kikuchi, Toshiaki Nishino · Journal of Geography (Chigaku Zasshi) · Japan

This study discusses strategies for sustaining and developing agriculture in Japan, based on 10 sample studies across various regions, including urban agriculture in Tokyo. Key strategies include ensuring capable farm operators, promoting rational farm management with advanced technology, maintaining stable income sources, establishing multiple sales channels, and forming producer-consumer networks. The research highlights the importance of locational, physical, economic, social, cultural, and political conditions, particularly accessibility to large cities and favorable physical conditions for production.

Ryo Iizuka, Kei Ota, Toshio Kikuchi · Journal of Geography (Chigaku Zasshi) · Japan (Kodaira City)

This study explored the growth and sustaining strategies of urban agriculture based on diversified agricultural management and interactions with urban residents, using Kodaira City, Tokyo Metropolis, as a case study. Analysis of previous literature, public survey data on the spatial distribution and classification of agricultural management patterns, and interviews with farmers revealed interactions between farmers and urban residents. In Kodaira City, interactions exist between farms and urban residents based on agricultural management, with distinct patterns influenced by local characteristics. These interaction styles prevent excessive competition, attract stable customers, and enable sustainable management.

Yusuke Aoki, Norihiro Nakai, Mamiko Numata · Journal of the City Planning Institute of Japan · Japan

This study investigated the possibility of applying development rights transfer to preserve urban agricultural land in a depopulating society, focusing on transferring development rights from urban agricultural land to city centers. The research calculated transfer rates using land price ratios and the land residual method, then applied these rates to hypothetical projects. It was found that in areas like Marunouchi and Ginza, a single project could transfer all development rights for Setagaya Ward's agricultural green spaces, while other areas required a combination of multiple projects.