Aging farmers are a reminder of who keeps the fields growing

I read an interesting article in the Japan Times today about Japan's aging rice farmers, and as someone who lives in a rural area, I could immediately understand where they were coming from. So many of the people working in the rice fields in my local area are well into their 60s and 70s, at a guess.

The article focused on a Tochigi-based couple, and mentioned that modern machinery has made it possible for them to keep working far longer than farmers could in previous generations. Planting and harvesting no longer require quite so many hands, but that technological progress has created a bit of a problem. Younger family members aren't as necessary on the farm as they once were, giving them more freedom to pursue careers and lives elsewhere. Urban migration is a real thing for so many rural communities here!

Tech to make rice planting easier is both a blessing and a curse, it seems...

Some of the stats in the article were pretty striking. One mentioned that the farming population has more than halved over the past two decades, and nearly 70% of farmers are now over 65. Fewer than one in eight is under 50.

The article also mentioned that the couple's grandson still travels from Tokyo to help during the busiest parts of the farming year, saying that he feels a responsibility to continue their legacy. He was quoted saying that "if white collar work doesn't work out, I'll go to the farm", so it seems like the rice farmer life isn't a first option but a backup. 

That really seems to be the heart of the issue. Technology can make farming easier, but it can't create the next generation of farmers. I do wonder what's going to happen with the rice farming landscape here in the next 10 to 20 years.