Announcement of the Rice Summit Inaugural General Meeting (Participation受付 for stakeholders / First 30 people)

Izumiotsu City, Osaka Prefecture (Mayor: Kenichi Minamide), will establish a new network called "Rice Connecting Inter-municipal Agricultural Cooperation Mayors' Council (common name: Rice Summit)," where local governments from producing and consuming regions collaborate to expand rice consumption and production.

In recent years, structural issues surrounding rice have become apparent, such as a shortage of farmers, aging populations, price hikes, and unstable supply and demand. To resolve these issues, the heads of 15 municipalities nationwide will participate, and with the keywords "Eat Rice," "Know Rice," and "Connect with Rice," they will implement concrete actions to realize sustainable production and consumption through the expansion of rice consumption and the re-recognition of rice as a staple food.

Furthermore, this council aims to create new initiatives and proposals utilizing the network of producing and consuming regions through industry-academia-government collaboration, including companies and academics, not limited to inter-municipal cooperation.

Regarding this inaugural general meeting, we will accept applications from stakeholders for participation, as detailed below, so that municipalities, companies, and academics considering future participation and cooperation can also join.

If you are interested, please do participate.

Outline of the Inaugural General Meeting

Date: Monday, May 18, Reiwa 8 (2026) 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Venue: National Association of Towns and Villages Hall (Nagatacho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo)

Scheduled Attendees

・Heads of participating municipalities (15 municipalities nationwide)

・Advisors (experts, private sector representatives)

・Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Content

・Announcement of Rice Summit Vision

・Sharing of activity plan

・Submission of proposals to the national government, etc.

About participation as an observer

Target: Municipalities, companies, academics, etc. (industry-academia-government stakeholders)

Capacity: 30 people (first-come, first-served)

Participation method: On-site participation only (no online streaming)

Application method: Please apply via the form below

URL: https://ttzk.graffer.jp/city-izumiotsu/smart-apply/surveys/7495125838391495802

Application deadline

Friday, May 15, Reiwa 8 (2026) 5:00 PM