著者
小濱 武
出版者
日本農業史学会
雑誌
農業史研究 (ISSN:13475614)
巻号頁・発行日
vol.47, pp.58-69, 2013 (Released:2017-03-23)

This paper examines the agricultural administration of the government of the Ryukyu Islands (GRI) during the United States' rule period, by focusing on the conflicting needs for rice importation and domestic rice production in the early 1960s. Rice was the staple food of the people in Okinawa, and Okinawa imported rice from other countries as the land and climate of Okinawa was not necessarily suited for rice production. Yet, the domestic production of rice was deemed crucially important for Okinawa because the price and amount of imported rice were unstable and unreliable. GRI set the Law Concerning Provisional Rice Demand and Supply Adjustment to support the price of domestic rice. The results of the study are as follows. First, as the amount of imported tasty rice increased, the consumer price of domestic rice and the producer price of that decreased. The system of the price support of domestic rice did not work well. The Account of Provisional Rice Demand and Supply Adjustment did not have enough financial resources because it was a self-supporting accounting system. Second, the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands (USCAR) did not permit GRI to have a strong protection for domestic rice like Food Control System in Japan. USCAR agreed with the Law Concerning Provisional Rice Demand and Supply Adjustment on condition that it was affective for three years and its account was separated from general account. GRI's aim to protect domestic rice from imported rice was hindered by the USCAR which pushed on the liberalization policy.