NTT East has decided to launch a new business that supports the cultivation of edible crickets as the number of landline users is declining.
In collaboration with a start-up company in Tokushima Prefecture, NTT East established a facility for cultivating edible crickets at its research base in Chofu City, Tokyo.
In addition to managing humidity and temperature using information communication and AI = artificial intelligence technology, we will also introduce technology to automate watering and feeding.
As insect food is gaining attention in preparation for future food crises, crickets are expected to grow as a business, such as by making them into powder and using them as food ingredients because the flavor is similar to shrimp.
With the number of fixed-line users declining, NTT East is aiming to commercialize this farming system by providing it to other companies, and is also working on farming sockeye salmon.
Through this series of businesses, we aim to generate profits of several billion yen in the next five years.
Mr. Keiji Tanaka of NTT East's Sales Strategy Promotion Office said, "With food shortages around the world becoming an issue, we would like to apply the knowledge we have cultivated to cricket farming."