Tokyo

Tokyo is composed of urban areas located in the southern part of the Kanto region in central Honshu, and two island regions: the Izu Islands and the Ogasawara Islands. The western part of Tokyo, the Tama region, features rolling hills, while urban agriculture continues in the agricultural lands of eastern lowlands such as Nerima, Edogawa, and Katsushika wards. Nerima Ward is a symbolic area of urban agriculture, with active efforts to preserve and reevaluate Edo Tokyo vegetables, including the Nerima daikon (radish). In the Tama region, fruit tree cultivation such as pears, grapes, and persimmons is carried out, and citizen farms and tourist farms function as places for food experiences for Tokyo residents. The climate differs significantly in the island regions. The Izu Islands (Hachijojima, Miyakejima, Oshima, etc.) are warm and known as a production area for Ashitaba. The Ogasawara Islands have a subtropical and tropical climate, producing tropical fruits that are difficult to cultivate on Honshu, such as passion fruit, papaya, and acerola. Ogasawara passion fruit is distributed at high unit prices due to its rarity and transportation costs, and there is consistent demand for it as a gift. Although the agricultural output of Tokyo is small compared to other prefectures, the preservation of Edo Tokyo vegetables, which have cultural and historical value, and new forms of urban agriculture such as agricultural experiences and educational agriculture are gaining attention.

Source: MAFF Crop Statistics (Reiwa 5 / 2023), JMA historical weather data

The greatest peculiarity of Tokyo's agriculture is that three different agricultural ecosystems—temperate urban agriculture, island temperate agriculture, and subtropical agriculture—coexist within the same prefecture. Urban farmers protecting Edo Tokyo vegetables in the fields of Nerima Ward, island farmers cultivating Ashitaba on Hachijojima, and tropical farmers growing passion fruit in Ogasawara are placed in completely different agricultural environments while belonging to the same administrative unit of "Tokyo." The initiative for Edo Tokyo vegetables is an attempt to connect disappearing heirloom varieties to modern food culture, adding a cultural preservation function to urban agriculture in addition to its agricultural production function. Although it cannot compete with other prefectures in economies of scale, it is establishing a unique position on the added value axes of rarity, story, and regionality. The duality of Tokyo as a large consumption area that is simultaneously a production area holds the possibility of bringing the distance from production area to dining table close to zero, and is attracting attention domestically and internationally as a model for urban agriculture.