Japan Offspring Fund (JOF) Monthly Newsletter
Jan. 2005, No.189

* Antibiotic-free revolution in the supermarket Antibiotic-free chicken meet is now increasingly on sale in Japan. Let's buy it and create a big change in the way meat is produced! When Japan Offspring Fund investigated the current situation on the supermarket shelves, we found that already over 10 % of all broilers are brought up without antibiotics as growth promoters. We introduce two Japanese producers, Amatake and Jumonji, that do not use antibiotics. This is happy news for the new year!

* Antibiotics as growth promoters should be prohibited In Sweden, antibiotics are not allowed to be used as growth promoters. The Swedish parliament decided in 1985 that such important drugs should not be used wastefully. We visited Swedish broiler farms and discussed the change in production with the farmers. For example, the veterinarians do not sell antibiotics, but rather, see their job as advisers who cooperate with farmers to prevent illness among farm animals. Rules for hygienic practices and good animal welfare are also important factors to produce safe food.

* Un-free world trade? Why are poor countries still unable to trade on the world market, in spite of the World Trade Organization? We interview Dr. Tsuchida who has been doing research on environmental destruction and the connection with trade. This was how he noticed that there was no understanding of the role of the "trader" within the current international economics and trade theory. In regular trade theory, what is discussed is trade between nations. However, in reality there is usually a trading company participating in trade. The examination of the role of the trader is missing from the academic discussion of the global trading system. In Dr. Tsuchida's analysis, "profit" is the main reason for a trading company to engage in trade. As for a developing country, with this "free trade" their property is taken away in the trade, so it is easy to understand why their lands are reduced to deserts...