CCC Marketing Research Institute participates as an advisor in the Half-Farming, Half-X Program in Happo Town, Akita Prefecture

2023.08.28 Press Releases
Happo Town Tourism Association (NPO) / CCCMK Holdings Co., Ltd. / CCC Marketing Research Institute

-Supporting the creation of a sustainable, half-farming, half-free lifestyle plan that meets the needs of Happo Town-

CCCMK Holdings Co., Ltd. (Head office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Takahashi Yoshinori) is a research institute that strives to understand consumer awareness as a "think tank that walks and thinks together with consumers." CCC Marketing Research Institute (hereinafter referred to as "CCC Marketing Research Institute") has announced that the Happo Town Tourism Association (headquarters: Happo Town, Yamamoto District, Akita Prefecture, Chairman: Ota Haruhiko) will be launching a "Half-Farming, Half-X" program in October 2023. Live! Play! Work! ~Experience rural life while working your day job~ We are pleased to announce that we will be participating as an advisor in the

"Half-farming, half-X" refers to a lifestyle in which one balances work in the primary industries of agriculture, forestry, and fishing with work in "X (something)" other than agriculture. Akita Prefecture is promoting the "half-farming, half-X" model as one way to address the regional issue of a declining agricultural population due to population decline and an aging society. CCC Marketing Research Institute participated in the Half-Farming, Half-X program as a monitor company in last year's Akita Prefectural Government's "Akita Rural Life Survey Project."Through farm work and interactions with agricultural businesses in Nikaho City, Akita Prefecture, and players working to revitalize the region, as well as workshops, we make proposals to solve the regional issues facing Nikaho City, and also provide consulting in other regions, making use of our experience as a half-farmer, half-X farmer. The decision to participate in Happo Town's Half-Farming, Half-X Program was made based on the results of last year's activities.

Happo Town is the northernmost seaside town in Akita Prefecture, surrounded by the rugged rocky reefs overlooking the Sea of Japan and the lush, mysterious Shirakami-Sanchi forest.The town cultivates local specialties such as green onions, shiitake mushrooms, chamomile, and bellflowers, as well as other medicinal herbs. Happo Town launched a half-farming, half-X program in 2021, focusing on harvesting these agricultural products, and the results of this initiative are beginning to emerge little by little. In 2023, we will work with CCC Marketing Research Institute to market the Half-Farming, Half-X program, aiming to create sustainable plans that meet needs and further increase the number of people involved.

Specifically, we plan to conduct qualitative research based on the results of the Half-Farming, Half-X program that Happo Town has undertaken so far, dig deeper into the needs of participants and the value that Happo Town has, visualize its appeal, and use this information to promote the Half-Farming, Half-X program and create plans. In addition, through dialogue with the agricultural workers who will be hosting the participants, we will examine how to create a better program for both participants and the agricultural workers, and hope to use this to revitalize Happo Town's Half-Farming, Half-X program in the future, and ultimately to create a related population.

■Comment from Mayor Mitsuya Horiuchi of Happo Town

This year marks the third year of Happo Town's half-farming, half-X initiative. In Happo Town, in addition to the declining population that is a social issue nationwide, the lack of successors and labor in the agricultural industry is seen as an urgent issue, and we will use this system to solve these issues and create a related population. This year's program will run from October to December. By continuing the half-farming, half-X initiative, we hope to allow people to experience the charms of Happo Town, which change with the seasons, and to create an opportunity for even one or two people to visit Happo Town again.

The CCC Group is promoting initiatives aimed at regional revitalization and local vitalization by utilizing its intellectual capital. Through participation in this Half-Farming, Half-X Program in Happo Town, CCC Marketing Research Institute will utilize its strengths of "data" x "creativity" x "consulting" to solve the issues facing Happo Town in Akita Prefecture from its unique perspective and approach to consumers.

Materials related to this matter

CCC Marketing Research Institute participates as an advisor in the Half-Farming, Half-X Program in Happo Town, Akita Prefecture

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