The entry of German agrochemical manufacturers such as Bayer AG and BASF into the global market has brought about global competition in the development of biostimulants, and these developments are also gaining momentum in Japan. In Japan, biostimulants were suddenly thrust into the limelight when they were taken up in the MIDORI Strategy for Sustainable Food Systems, a new strategy formulated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) in May 2021. The strategy calls for the development of innovative crop protection technologies using biostimulants (technologies that enhance stress tolerance in plants).

In January 2018, the Japan Bio-Stimulants Association was established by eight manufacturers of agricultural materials such as Snow Brand Seed Co., Ltd. With the addition of pesticide manufacturers such as Sumitomo Chemical, Syngenta Japan, Nippon Soda, and Hodogaya Chemical, the association now has 36 full members (as of October 22, 2025). The association estimates that the market for this field will grow at an average annual growth rate of 11.4% to approximately 1.6 trillion yen by 2032.

On May 30, 2025, MAFF, under the name of the Food Safety and Consumer Affairs Bureau, drew up and published guidelines on the labeling of biostimulants. At the same time, the Japan Bio-Stimulants Association published voluntary management standards in line with the guidelines.

Biostimulants are materials applied to soil to support the natural functions of crops and soil. They improve nutrient uptake and utilization efficiency, provide resistance to such problems as drought, high temperatures, and salt damage, and improve crop quality and yield. In Japan, bokashi fertilizer, a kind of fuzzy, all-round fertilizer made from organic matter such as rice bran and oil residue fermented and decomposed by microorganisms, has traditionally been used. Thus, what was used in the past is similar to what are now termed gbiostimulants.h

However, things are changing with the entry of major agrochemical companies. Materials such as seaweed, animal and plant extracts, microorganisms, and vitamins are used as raw materials, but in the future, biotechnological applications such as genetic modification and genome editing are expected to be employed to increase efficiency. In addition, it is thought that hybrid products containing ingredients such as pesticides and fertilizers will increase for the sake of commercialization.

The United States and China are actively conducting xenotransplantation, and Japan is also moving forward positively toward xenotransplantation using pig kidneys. PorMedTec Co., Ltd., a Kawasaki-based startup from Meiji University, announced on October 11 that it will start xenotransplantation using pig kidneys to patients with kidney failure at the earliest in 2027. The company's founder, Hiroshi Nagashima, a senior professor at Meiji University, made the announcement at the Annual Congress of the Japan Society for Transplantation held in Nagoya. PolMedTec uses cloning technology to breed organ-transplant pigs developed by a US company. The US company has already carried out transplants in the United States and plans to apply for approval from the government based on the accumulated data, but approval in Japan is expected to be difficult as Japan has no experience with xenotransplantation. (Yomiuri Shimbun Online Edition 2025/10/11)

Organoid Farm Inc., based in Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture, exhibited a prototype product at Bio Japan 2025, held over three days from October 8. Organoid Farm is a venture company established in 2021 with a 100% investment from JGC Holdings Corporation and is developing cell-cultured meat. At the exhibition, Organoid Farm displayed cell-cultured beef and dishes using the beef as an ingredient. Organoid Farm plans to open a pilot demonstration facility in 2027. (Foovo 2025/10/13)

Singaporean cultured meat company ImpacFat, which aims to produce food by culturing fish fat cells, opened a base in Japan on October 1, 2025. The company plans to advance research and development in Singapore and Japan with investment from Toyo Seikan Group Holdings, Ltd. and others. (Nikkei Biotech 2025/10/2)

On October 15, the Aichi Prefectural Assembly adopted an opinion statement calling for the labeling of genome-edited foods and submitted it to the prime minister, the speakers of both houses of the Diet, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and the Consumer Affairs Agency. It is the sixth prefectural assembly to adopt such a resolution since the Iwate Prefectural Assembly did so in March. Hokuto City, Yamanashi Prefecture, adopted a similar statement on September 30, becoming the fourth municipal assembly to adopt such a resolution this year, following Ebetsu City, Hokkaido, which did so in June.