Among developed nations, Japan has an exceptionally low food self-sufficiency rate.Although food is a crucial factor that influences a nation’s fate, the industry faces challenges such as a lack of successors and unstable incomes affected by weather conditions, making agriculture an undesirable career option. Okinawa is no exception to this crisis.
However, one individual is determined to revolutionize agriculture in Okinawa and across Japan through DX. We sat down with Yuichi Shingaki, the CEO of Techvegetas Inc., to learn more about his ambitious vision.
Developing Innovative DX Tools to Expand Markets
and Opportunities for Farmers!
Our interview took place at the Naha Industrial Support Center, a facility designed to foster business activities and support local enterprises. This hub is home to many up-and-coming companies, including Butterfly Pea Research Institute Inc., which operates from an office on the fifth floor. As we knocked on the door, we were warmly greeted by Mr. Wang, a tall figure dressed in a wellness-blue casual suit—the very color of the butterfly pea flower—wearing a friendly smile.
Many readers may already be familiar with the Butterfly Pea, a leguminous plant known for its vivid blue blossoms. The tea made from its petals turns a striking shade of purple when a drop of lemon or shikuwasa juice is added. Thanks to its unique color-changing property and aesthetic appeal, it has gained popularity in recent years, becoming a staple Okinawan souvenir.
Since farming is seen as an unprofitable career, fewer young people aspire to become farmers. Parents too, hesitate to encourage their children to follow in their footsteps, fearing they will endure the same struggles.
“If farming isn’t profitable, why not make it profitable?” Shingaki thought. With that idea in mind, he introduced DX to Okinawa’s traditionally analog agricultural sector, creating a tool called “Okinawa Agricultural Revolution” to connect farmers with buyers and the food industry, ultimately increasing agricultural income.
“Okinawa Agricultural Revolution” is a database-driven application that digitizes and consolidates information from farmers. It allows farmers to input details about their produce, expected harvest times and volumes, suggested retail prices, and even recommended ways to consume their crops. This information is then leveraged across various platforms designed for different market needs:
- “Harumoni Fields” – A web application that serves as a B2B negotiation platform for bulk buyers.
- “Mogu Shop” – An e-commerce site catering to hotels and restaurants.
- “Mogu Note” – A media site connecting consumers directly with farmers.
The B2B platforms provide detailed information on agricultural products, eliminating the need for buyers to contact farmers individually, ensuring they can purchase the right amount at the right time. On the farmers’ side, the system reduces the burden of sales negotiations, enables better production planning, and significantly expands sales channels.
Meanwhile, the B2C platform “Mogu Note” allows consumers to scan QR codes on store-bought produce, giving them insight into the farmers’ stories and production methods. Consumers can also send feedback directly to the farmers.
Each of these tools fosters stronger communication between buyers and farmers, offering valuable insights and opening new opportunities for the agricultural community.
“Devote Yourself to One Thing” –
A Father’s Words That Led to Agricultural Innovation
From a young age, Yuichi Shingaki often pondered the question, “Why was I born? What is my purpose?” It was during high school that he decided to pursue a path in agriculture.
Gifted in biology, young Shingaki was deeply influenced by his father’s words:
“Devote yourself to one thing and master it.”
With this in mind, he enrolled in the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of the Ryukyus. There, he learned about the severe challenges facing the agricultural industry and began asking himself,
“Is there a way to make agriculture more profitable and appealing?”
This question led him to join JA Okinawa after graduation.
However, his experience at the Agricultural Support Center left a lasting impact. At one farm, he witnessed a shocking scene—mountains of perfectly good cabbages being discarded in bulk. The reason? A surplus harvest had caused market prices to plummet.This moment made him question the inefficiencies in agricultural distribution, where an oversupply or shortage of crops could lead to massive waste. He thought,
“If farmers had multiple sales channels, wouldn’t this problem be solved?”
This realization planted the seed for his future business.
Later, he had the opportunity to work on a consulting project for a farming business. By leveraging social media and crowdfunding, he successfully helped the farm establish its brand. The campaign gained media attention, being featured on TV and in newspapers.
This experience made him realize the potential impact of sharing success stories and best practices within the agricultural sector. He believed it could bring significant transformation to the entire industry.
However, within the massive JA organization, he often encountered bureaucratic obstacles. Frustrated by these limitations, he transitioned to an IT company, where he gained expertise in system development and web marketing. Equipped with this new knowledge, he launched his own business in 2015.
At the same time, he worked at an agricultural production corporation and a direct produce market, honing his skills in business management, sales strategies, and consulting for farmers.
“By working on-site, I had a clear vision of what I wanted to create,” Shingaki recalls.
Fueled by this vision, he relentlessly developed the “Okinawa Agricultural Revolution” app, often sacrificing sleep to bring his idea to life.
However…
Driving Agricultural DX:
The Launch of the “Digital-harusah Cooperative”
“I went out to promote the app, expecting farmers to be thrilled. And while they did say, ‘Shingaki-san, this is amazing!’ they also followed up with, ‘But we’re too busy to input all this data’ or ‘We don’t have enough manpower to manage it’” .
As previously mentioned, many farmers belong to the Ojii and Obaa (elderly) generations. No matter how innovative the app was, to them, it remained nothing more than a pie in the sky.
Shingaki was discouraged. But at the same time, he firmly believed that if farmers adopted this system, it could change their futures for the better.
“Maybe this was just my personal ambition, but I had to push forward! I was determined to spark a true agricultural revolution!” he recalls, rallying himself to keep going.
The following year, after launching the app, he and a group of supportive farmers established the “Digital-harusah Cooperative” (commonly known as “Degi-haru”). This cooperative brings together farmers who are already implementing or want to implement digital transformation in agriculture, along with businesses eager to support this shift.
Beyond farmers, the cooperative also includes pastry chefs, food processors, and various industry professionals. Many of its core members were people from Shingaki’s expanding network—individuals who resonated with his vision of revolutionizing agriculture and wanted to support his mission.
Since many farmers struggled to enter data, cooperative members offered to do it for them and provided hands-on support.
“We told them, ‘We’ll stand by you! We’ll even find new sales channels for you! Just trust us and give it a try!’”
Through these efforts, they gradually got the system up and running. Additionally, ideas and initiatives born from within the cooperative have been developed into real, impactful projects.
“Techvegetas develops the system, and Degi-haru operates it on the ground—it’s a symbiotic relationship. By dividing roles clearly, farmers began to understand our vision, and we were able to set clear priorities,” explains Shingaki.
For instance, in 2023, a large typhoon damaged mango crops, making them unsellable due to minor blemishes, causing market prices to plummet.
Instead of letting them go to waste, the cooperative bought the mangoes at four times the market price and froze them. Once the typhoon season passed, they launched a campaign called “Mango Rescue Project”, selling the salvaged mangoes through their EC platform.
The initiative gained significant traction, spreading rapidly on social media. It even caught the attention of a major convenience store chain, leading to a bulk purchase deal. Ultimately, these once-unsellable mangoes were stocked at 22,000 stores nationwide—selling out due to their immense popularity.
As Degi-haru continued to build its track record, industries beyond agriculture began reaching out with interest.
Even young farmers within JA Okinawa’s youth division have started engaging in discussions with Shingaki.“I’d love to collaborate effectively with JA and other industry leaders. To do that, we need results and a solid strategy. But in the end, we all share the same goal—to support farmers,” he states, staying true to his altruistic vision.
Turning Knowledge and Technology into Revenue:
An Agricultural Experience School Shaping the Future of Food
Shingaki and his team aim to create “million-yen players” in Okinawan agriculture, but their efforts extend beyond expanding sales channels for crops. They have also established an alternative revenue stream by monetizing the experience of farming itself.
One of their key initiatives is the “Degi-haru Harusah Experience School”, where active farmers—who are also cooperative members—serve as instructors, teaching consumers about natural farming methods. Unlike typical community gardens that simply rent out plots of land, this program provides a structured and immersive learning experience, attracting significant attention and popularity.
For farmers, this initiative is a win-win opportunity, as it allows them to utilize idle farmland and monetize their expertise. When asked about the most rewarding aspect of his journey, Shingaki immediately pointed to this experience school.
“I used to feel most rewarded when individual farmers would tell me, ‘Thanks to you, I have more buyers now.’ But as my company grew and our projects expanded, the impact we had on society became more evident,” Shingaki recalls.
“One day, while watching families happily working together in the fields at our experience school, I thought, ‘Yes, this is it. This is the future of agriculture I wanted to create!’ It was a powerful moment of realization. If I had only pursued IT, I would never have experienced this kind of fulfillment.”
Of course, Shingaki is not one to stop at one milestone.
When we conducted this interview in early November 2024, he was deeply involved in preparations for “Nuchigusui Festa 2024,” a comprehensive food festival dedicated to natural farming and pesticide-free agriculture. Additionally, he was working on finalizing the launch of a certification system that would allow the cooperative to issue its own quality assurance mark for organic and pesticide-free produce.
“I want to turn Nanjo City into an organic village!”
From a business perspective, Shingaki acknowledges that some farmers may need to use chemical fertilizers to accelerate crop growth cycles.
However, from a diversity in food culture standpoint, he remains passionate about revolutionizing this field as well.
“Vegetables grown using natural farming methods have an incredibly rich, concentrated flavor. When elderly farmers try them, they often say, ‘This tastes like the vegetables from the old days.’ They also last significantly longer in the fridge. The truth is, people want this kind of produce, but they simply don’t know where to buy it. Right now, these vegetables aren’t even available in most supermarkets,” he explains.
Shingaki envisions a third-party certification process that would verify the farming methods and field conditions, ensuring transparency and trust. This system would bring back traditional fruits and vegetables to modern markets, making them widely accessible to consumers.
If this certification mark successfully brands organic produce as a trustworthy and desirable option, it could trigger a revolution in consumer perception, making safe, high-quality produce a standard choice for households.
Becoming a Game-Changer in Agricultural Business:
Towards an Exciting Future for Farming
At the end of our interview, we asked Shingaki about his future ambitions.
He paused for a moment, gazing at his PC screen, before finally responding:
“Well… At Techvegetas, our mission is to ‘Drive dynamic and exciting agricultural businesses,’ while the cooperative aims to ‘Create an agricultural model that people aspire to be part of.’ Personally, I want to become a major disruptive force in the agricultural business landscape. By expanding our network of stakeholders and collaborators, I hope to ignite an even greater movement.”
Sensing that his true aspirations might be even grander, we pressed further:
“Your system and business model could reshape not just Okinawa but the entire future of agriculture in Japan, don’t you think?”
At this, Shingaki gave a sheepish smile, revealing a humble yet determined revolutionary spirit—a trait common among Uchinanchu (Okinawan people).
(From Degi-haru’s official Instagram)
Since being selected for the “Okinawa Open Innovation Creation Promotion Project” in 2022, Techvegetas and the Degi-haru Cooperative have steadily expanded their influence and impact.
Looking ahead, they have multiple projects in the pipeline, including initiatives to integrate agriculture with welfare programs.
“We’ve finally laid the groundwork to drive true social impact through innovation. We’re still in the very early stages, but I’d love to bring in investors who share our vision for the future of agriculture,” Shingaki states with conviction.
Someday, 50 or even 100 years from now, when people reflect on the pivotal moments in Okinawa’s agricultural history, they may recognize this era as the turning point—the moment when the “Agricultural Revolution” began.
And leading the charge, steadfast in his mission, will be Yuichi Shingaki, running forward with his team, unwavering in his pursuit of change.
Interview and Japanese Text by Narabayashi Minako
