KUALA LUMPUR - An agricultural company in Fukuoka has highlighted the vital role of foreign workers at a time when politicians are debating stricter rules on foreign nationals in Japan.

Following last year’s House of Councillors election, immigration policies have drawn more attention, with rural businesses warning that labour shortages are worsening as Japan’s population ages and shrinks.

Vegecirque Co President, Asaya Ogata, 35, said his hometown is losing young people, noting, “There are no more young children in the area, only elderly people.

“In 30 years, it might become even more desolate as abandoned houses and overgrown land spread across the community,” he added.

The Ogata family has farmed near the Chikugo River for generations, and the company now grows vegetables such as spinach and mustard greens for markets across Kyushu.

After struggling to retain Japanese workers, the farm hired its first foreign workers in 2013, and today 14 of its 16 employees are foreigners mainly from Vietnam, the Philippines and Indonesia.

Many of them came to Japan after high school under technical intern or specified skilled worker schemes and handled all stages of farm work from early morning harvesting to evening shipments.

A 32 year old Vietnamese worker said adjusting was hard at first, but added, “At first, I didn't understand anything, partly because of the dialect. But everyone welcomed me warmly, so I feel secure working here. 

“I miss my child, but I want to work hard in Japan, where the salary is high.”

Her idea to grow Vietnamese vegetables such as coriander and water spinach later helped the company expand its business, with orders coming from Vietnamese restaurants.

“They came all the way here because they wanted to earn money. Without them, we would have had to downsize the business,” Ogata said.

Government data shows Japan’s core agricultural workforce fell about 40 per cent over the past decade, while the number of foreign farm workers has continued to rise.

Ogata criticised official plans to limit foreign labour, saying, “Each vegetable has different growth conditions, requiring human labor, and the kind of mechanization we see with industrial products is difficult. Based on past experience, it's challenging to expect employment of Japanese workers.”

He urged policymakers to rethink their approach. He said Japan’s future depends on understanding conditions in the agricultural sector and pursuing coexistence that benefits both Japanese and foreign workers, rather than relying on restrictive regulations.