- Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan)
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Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries 農林水産省 Nōrinsuisanshō 
MAFF building Agency overview Headquarters Tokyo, Japan Ministers responsible Michihiko Kano, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
Nobutaka Tsutsui, Senior Vice Minister
Tsukasa Iwamoto, Senior Vice MinisterWebsite http://www.maff.go.jp The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (農林水産省 Nōrinsuisanshō) a cabinet ministry in the government of Japan responsible for oversight of the agriculture, forestry and fishing industries. Its acronym is MAFF.
Contents
History
The Constitution of the Empire of Japan provided for the creation of a Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce (農商務省 Nōshōmushō), which was established in 1881, with Tani Tateki as its first minister.
In 1925, the commerce functions were separated out into a separate Ministry of Commerce (商工省 Shōkōshō), and the ministry was renamed the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (農林省 Nōrinshō). The ministry was also given responsibility for oversight of the Factory Act of 1903, which provided regulations for work hours and worker safety in both industrial and agricultural industries.
From 1943-1945, when the Ministry of Commerce was abolished due to the nationalization of Japanese industry for the war effort, parts of that ministry reverted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, which was again briefly named Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce (農商省 Nōshōshō).
In 1978, the name of Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry was expanded to its present form to better reflect the ministry's role in guaranteeing the Japanese public a safe food supply, and to protect producers and workers in the food production industries.
Currently, Michihiko Kano hold this post as minister.
Roles
The primary function of the ministry is to set quality standards for food products, supervise commodity markets and food sales, and to undertake land reclamation and land improvement projects.
Gundam Controversy
On October 5, 2007, an employee in Japan's agriculture ministry was reprimanded for allegedly contributing 260 times to the Japanese-language Wikipedia article about Gundam. Ministry official Tsutomu Shimomura noted, “The agriculture ministry is not in charge of Gundam.”[1]
See also
References
External links
Japanese government ministries and agencies 
Cabinet Office (Imperial Household Agency · Fair Trade Commission · National Public Safety Commission and National Police Agency · Financial Services Agency · Consumer Affairs Agency)Internal Affairs and Communications (List) · Justice (List) · Foreign Affairs (List) · Finance (List) · Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (List) · Health, Labour and Welfare (List) · Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (List) · Economy, Trade and Industry (List) · Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (List) · Environment (List) · Defense (List)Board of Audit (constitutionally independent) Coordinates: 35°40′26″N 139°45′07″E / 35.674°N 139.752°E
Categories:- Government ministries of Japan
- Agriculture in Japan
- Fisheries ministries
- Forestry ministries
- Agriculture ministries
- Ministries established in 1881
- Japanese government stubs
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