Research on new wheat and microorganisms is underway to reduce the emission of "nitrous oxide," which is said to have a greenhouse effect about 300 times higher than that of carbon dioxide.
The greenhouse effect of "nitrous oxide" emitted from nitrogen fertilizers used in agriculture is about 300 times that of carbon dioxide, and reduction is an issue.
Under these circumstances, the national research institute "International Agricultural Research Institute" has developed a new variety of wheat that has the effect of reducing nitrous oxide emissions in collaboration with universities in Japan and overseas.
It has the effect of preventing the components of nitrogen fertilizer from changing to nitrous oxide, and in the experiment, it was possible to reduce emissions by 25%.
In addition, because it can efficiently absorb the components of fertilizer, it is possible to maintain the same amount of production as normal wheat even if the amount of fertilizer is reduced by about 60%.
"It is important to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture," said Tadashi Yoshihashi, Group Leader of the International Agricultural Research Institute.
In addition, a group led by Tohoku University and the National Agriculture and Food Research Organization is conducting research on bacteria that have the function of converting nitrous oxide generated in soybean fields into another harmless gas.
So far, we have been able to reduce emissions from fields during the harvest season by 30%, and we are aiming for further reductions.
Efforts to reduce greenhouse gases in the agricultural sector are accelerating.