別海町における最近の酪農経営の変化

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Most part of eastern Hokkaido, in which Betsukai town surveyed in this study is situated, has long been regarded as one of marginal land in term of agriculture. In addition to remoteness from central place, those areas have conditions unfavourable for cultivation and infrastructures insufficient to economic activities. These things are main reasons that there had been a large extent of land kept uncultivated for long time. National government reconsidered Hokkaido to be a potential area for growing demand for natural resources and food after the World War Second. The government set up a new agency what it is now called as Hokkaido Development Agency, which has a key role in implementing development projects. In a couple of times, Betsukai town was selected to establish new model of dairy farming in different plans. Those are so-called a Pilot Farm and New Dairy Farm with large scale project in agriculture. In regard to regional development, Betsukai town has enjoyed beneficial conditions to improving foundation of dairy farming compared with other regions. This study discusses some characteristics of change in dairy farming which has been come out since 1970. The data used in this study is based on agricultural settlement as the smallest statistical unit in Agricultural Census in Japan. In the town dairy farmers have strikingly expanded their management to increase number of keeping milk cows and acreage of holding land. Those who attained their management in large mostly concentrate in eastern and southern area. There is also close relation of number of milk cow to extent of land. The more cows they plan to keep, the larger grassland they need. Much of grassland has been converted from woodland or lowland through public undertakings executed by national or local government. In western part farmers inhabited much earlier than those in eastern and southern ones. Furthermore the fact that most of land had been already developed suggests the limits to expansion of the farming. In contrast, large scale project aiming at high efficient farming was accommodated in astern eastern and southern areas where vast extent of land still remain uncleared. It seems that the project generally facilitate farmers not only to expand the farming, but to incur great debt which leads to insecure operation. The areas dominated with sizeable farming also have experienced high decrease of farmers. Some part of the decline is being replaced with new ones who moved into such areas. These migrants are less important to contribute to population growth. It however should be stressed that those people are generally responsible for maintain rural community and to reuse infrastructure having partly been abandoned by previous farmers.

別海町における最近の酪農経営の変化

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