Chapter 1. Organizational Culture and Management Strategy in Small Rural Economies -- Chapter 2. Historical Analysis of the Impact of Postwar Agricultural Policy on Japanese Peasants -- Chapter 3. Role of Farmland Intermediary Management Institutions in Farmland Conservation and Utilization -- Chapter 4. Characteristics of Urban-Rural Exchange Activities in Paddy Field Agriculture: Issues and Challenges of Farmland Management in Rural Communities -- Chapter 5. Development of Community Businesses Centered on Land-Use Agriculture in Hilly and Mountainous Areas -- Chapter 6. Development of Community Businesses Centered on Business Cooperative Associations that Support Local Primary Industries -- Chapter 7. Role of Community Business in Farmland Conservation in Mountainous Village -- Chapter 8. Factors Affecting Urban Consumers’ Choices for Locally Produced Tomato Juice: A Case of Tokyo and Osaka Prefectures in Japan -- Chapter 9. Factors That Influence Japanese Sake Purchasing Preferences -- Chapter 10. Factors Influencing Donation Management in Municipalities Under the Hometown Donation Policy -- Chapter 11. Historical Analysis of Food-related Activities in Extension Services for Home Living Improvement -- Chapter 12. Factors Affecting Residents’ Satisfaction with Community Development Activities in Former Elementary School Districts -- Chapter 13. Characteristics of Resident Participation and Cooperative Awareness in the Early Activity Stage of a Newly Formed Community Development Association in an Elementary School District.

This book provides new perceptions of rural community development by considering the relationships between communities and individuals. It addresses how farming and local communities can be maintained in areas facing population decline and increased in abandoned farmland. As a sequel to Farm and Rural Community Management in Less-Favored Areas, this book focuses on the conditions for rebuilding small rural economies through rural community vitalization in less-favored areas of Japan. Key topics addressed in the book include farmland liquidation and conservation, along with applicable agricultural policies, agribusiness development under a broad-based community development process, the market characteristics of locally processed foods, and the relationship between participation in broad-based community management and residents’ characteristics. The primary target are hilly and mountainous regions, such as in Shimane Prefecture, in western Japan, and other mountainous areas that are the main less-favored areas in Japan. The book presents findings from econometric and statistical analyses, historical and actual condition surveys. Academically, the book contributes to the elucidation of community-based regional management through interactions between communities, residents, farmers, and policies. It identifies conditions for rebuilding small rural economies are based on research on the characteristics of regional agriculture and rural communities in less-favored areas. This book is written for researchers, graduate students, and readers who are concerned about agriculture-based rural development in less-favored areas. It promotes both public and field-level practice in rural areas. The content will be of interest to all those seeking to understand rural society in Japan.