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Key words: pesticide use, navigation system, on-site warning system, GAP

A NAVIGATION SYSTEM FOR APPROPRIATEPESTICIDE USE AND FOOD SAFETY

Teruaki NansekiNational Agriculture Research Center

Kannondai 3-1-1, Tsukuba 305-8666, Japan

ABSTRACT

To prevent the occurrence of pesticide misapplication, it is necessary to establish support systemsfor appropriate pesticide use by applying information technology (IT) based on prior riskmanagement. This paper introduces the concept of the Navigation System for Appropriate PesticideUse (Nouyaku-navi), the state of development of the system, functions of the latest system and theresults of the demonstration experiment. The latest Nouyaku-navi comprises various functions, asfollows: support functions for creating guidelines on pest control, support functions for creatingpesticide use plans, judgment functions for the pesticide use plans, on-site warning functions forpesticide application and functions for on-site registration of pesticide application records. Usersof the system can create pesticide use plans by means of a personal computer and easily judgetheir propriety using the Nouyaku-navi judgment server. Also, users can easily use a cellularphone to determine the propriety of pesticide application from farming fields or agrochemicalstorage lockers just before the application. If the plan has no problem, data on the pesticideapplication can be simultaneously registered on the system as a pesticide application record. Alsodiscussed are issues on the Nouyaku-navi and its relationship with good agricultural practice(GAP) and traceability systems.

INTRODUCTION

In recent years, the practical use of traceabilitysystems has been promoted in the fields ofagricultural production and distribution (Ikeda,Sugiyama and Hara 2003; Yamamoto 2003;Food Safety and Consumer Affairs Bureau ofthe Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry andFishery 2005). This trend has developed alongwith an increase of public interest in foodsafety and security generated by the BSE(bovine spongiform encephalopathy) issue,problems of pesticide residue andmisapplication, the deliberate food mislabelingscandal, among other things. In the agriculturalproduction process, campaigns foragrochemicals application records have beenmounted and procedures have begun todetermine whether a pesticide application wasappropriate after the application. Withtraceability systems, such operations areinevitable and therefore the systems should bepromoted. However, if a misapplication ofagrochemicals is discovered after the

application, problems of disposal of theagricultural products concerned and a violationof the obligation of appropriate pesticide usewill occur and such problems will destroypublic trust in distributors as well as producersand production centers, possibly becoming anissue of critical importance.Standards for pesticide use have been reviseda number of times in line with expansion oftheir application, thus becoming more detailedand complicated. In addition, because of theuse of unregistered agrochemicals, theAgricultural Chemicals Regulation Law wasrevised in respect of user obligation to complywith standards and of penalties for failure todo so. Whoever commits an offense againstthe law shall receive punishment ofincarceration of no more than three years, afine of no more than one million yen, or both(Tazou, 2003). In agricultural production,mislabeling of pesticide containers or writtenerrors in guidelines on pest control created byprefectural governments have been discovered.As a result, situations have occurred in which

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prefectural governments are being heldresponsible for losses. Moreover, in particularfor farmers intending a growing system withreduced pesticide use, pesticide use plans mustbe constantly revised according to outbreaksof diseases or pest insects during the busyfarming season. In consequence, there arelimits and concerns in respect of manuallycreating pesticide use plans that accuratelymeet all the standards for pesticide application.To prevent these issues in advance, it isnecessary to establish support systems forappropriate pesticide use by applyinginformation technology (IT) based upon priorrisk management. Here we describe the conceptof the “Navigation System for AppropriatePesticide Use” (Nouyaku-navi), on which wehave promoted research and development, andthe current state of the latest system. Also,the future challenges for the Nouyaku-navi andthe relationship with GAP and traceabilitysystems are discussed. The details of thesystem are described in Nanseki et al. (2005).

CONCEPT OF NAVIGATION SYSTEMFOR APPROPRIATE PESTICIDE USE

The Nouyaku-navi is a system aimed atactively guiding and supporting farmers’ correctuse of pesticides in agricultural production inorder to prevent in advance theirmisapplication. The research concerned waslaunched in 2003, and the R & D activities forthe systems have been performed since 2004under the budget of the “Research project forutilizing advanced technologies in agriculture,forestry and fisheries” by the Ministry ofAgriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. TheNouyaku-navi judgment server was firstdeveloped as a core system, and anoperational test and an open demonstrationtest of it have already been performed.

In the Nouyaku-navi, the goal is toenable farmers to prevent pesticidemisapplication due to carelessness and toautomatically register the application records byautomatic recognition of the agrochemicalsusing bar-codes (Japanese Article Numbercodes) and/or RFID (Radio FrequencyIdentification: Wireless IC) tags attached to theagrochemical containers (Nanseki, Sugahara andWatanabe, 2004, Fig. 1, http://nouyaku-navi.info/). It is expected that using the

Nouyaku-navi will achieve effects such asprevention of pesticide misapplication and ofpromotion of effective pesticide use andreduced pesticide farming. In addition, theNouyaku-navi will accomplish the automaticand labor-saving collection and accumulation ofobjective data which supports pesticideapplication records. Outlines of major systemsassumed in the Nouyaku-navi project are asfollows:

Development of support systems forjudgment on appropriate pesticide use

A judgment server system has been developed(hereinafter referred to as the Nouyaku-navijudgment server) which determines in advancethe propriety of pesticide use, together with asystem for preparing appropriate plans orguidelines on pesticide application and pestcontrol which can easily and precisely createsuch plans.

Development of Systems for automaticrecognition of pesticide application andfor on-site warning

An on-site warning system has been developedwhich uses barcodes or RFID to give farmerswarning information and real-time judgments onthe propriety of pesticides planned to be used,and an automatic recognition system ofpesticide application which can accomplish alabor-saving and objective understanding of thestate of pesticide application in farming fields.

Development of a risk assessmentsystem for cases of pest infestation

A system for risk assessment in individualcases of pest infestation/pesticide applicationcorresponding to actual situations inproduction fields has been developed byaccumulating information on pesticideapplication using mobile terminals and apesticide automatic recognition system, and byusing information on pest infestation collectedby micro climate monitoring in the field and byautomatic insect counters and others. Also, asystem for assessing the risks of a pestinfestation in terms of effective pesticide useor introduction of alternative materials has beendeveloped by applying a data mining method

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Database on the pesticide registrationinformation disclosed (e.g., AgriculturalChemicals Inspection Station,prefectural institutes)

Existing disclosure systems forproduction records (e.g., SEICA of theNational Food Research Institute)

Support Systems forAppropriate Propriety Use

Judgment Server Systemfor AppropriatePesticide Use

Support system for creation of recommendationon pest control (e.g., prefectural institutes andagricultural cooperatives)

Support system for creation ofpesticide use plans(e.g., producer groups and JAs)

Information for pesticidepropriety use

Cellular phone (withcamera), mobile

Check at thetime ofpurchasingpesticides

Pesticideapplicationrecords, statesof pesticide use

Appropriatepesticideuse plans

Field moni-toring system

Informationon pest

Database on the cases ofpest infestation andpesticide application

Pesticide automaticrecognition systemusing RFID

Barcode readeror RFID reader(various forms)

Risk assessment systembased on the cases of pestinfestation

On site warning systemusing RFID

Risk assessment system forpest infestation

Pesticide use automatic recognitionand on-site warning system

Fig. 1. Overall view of the Nouyaku-navi system.

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on individual cases of pest infestation andpesticide application, as well as on a climatedatabase.

Risk management system for pesticideapplication using the Nouyaku-navi

To put to practical use the results of researchon the Nouyaku-navi, a commercial system forJAs or advanced producer groups must bedeveloped, based on traceability systems andcollaboration with GAP. We suggested“feasibility study experiments for riskmanagement systems of pesticide applicationusing the Nouyaku-navi” for inclusion in the“2005 Ubiquitous Food Safety and SecuritySystem Development Activities” sponsored bythe Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry andFisheries (http://www.maff.go.jp/www/press/cont2/20050701press_3.html), and oursuggestion was adopted in July 2005. Thecharacteristics of the system intended to bedeveloped are summarized as follows: (1)function for multi-step and prior judgment onthe propriety of pesticide use and for on-sitewarnings which meet various differentstandards among local communities, producers,and production systems (e.g., contract farming),(2) function for automatic registration ofappropriate pesticide application information(5W1H) at the time of prior judgment on thepropriety of its use, and (3) function for real-time analyses of actual states of pestinfestation or agrochemicals application anddisplaying advice on effective application ofthe pesticides concerned.

NEW FUNCTIONS IN THE NAVIGATIONSYSTEM FOR APPROPRIATE PESTICIDE USE

We have already suggested a two-stepprocedure for appropriate pesticide application:first, the creation of pesticide use plans andjudgment on their propriety, and second,registration of the application recordsintegrated into the judgment just before theactual application. According to this procedure,the Nouyaku-navi provides functions asfollows (Nanseki et al., 2005); (1) A “supportfunction for creation of guidelines on pestcontrol” which searches and extracts data onpesticide registration information to generatethe guidelines and recommendations for pest

control. (2) A “support function for creation ofpesticide use plans” which supports generationof pesticide use plans and spray calendars. (3)A “judgment function for pesticide correct use”which judges the propriety of pesticides to beused, based on the guidelines on pest controland on the pesticide use plans. (4) A“function for on-site warning and applicationrecords” which immediately prior to applicationjudges the propriety of pesticides to be usedand registers the application records usingmobile terminals such as cellular phones,portable computers and others.

Users of the system can, via personalcomputer, obtain data on the latest pesticideregistration information (recommendations forpest control) required for creation of pestcontrol guidelines and application plans fromthe Nouyaku-navi judgment server. A pesticideuse plan prepared by a personal computer canbe easily assessed for propriety using theNouyaku-navi judgment server (Fig. 2).Immediately prior to application, users infarming fields or at pesticide storage lockerscan, via cellular phone, easily judge thepropriety of the pesticides planned for use.When an application plan is determined to beappropriate, the data can be immediatelyregistered as a pesticide use record. For theon-site warning function, two types ofjudgment system have been prepared, takingconsideration of past records or future plans ofapplication. In the following section, an outlineof the main functions is described.

System-development environment

Table 1 shows a system-developmentenvironment. A Linux OS (operating system)machine was used for the server system andPHP was used as the programming language.For the DataBase Management system (DBMS),MySQL, characterized by a high-speedprocessing capacity, was used because thevolume of data on pesticide registration wasrelatively small (approximately 50 MB). The PCsystem was developed using Microsoft VisualBasic (MS-VB) which allows easy prototypingunder the assumption of widely-used MS-Windows machines. The application for cellularphones was developed using JAVA (i-Appli),targeting NTT DoCoMo FOMA (900, 901) andMOVA (505, 506).

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Fig. 2. Image of the use of the Nouyaku-navi judgment server

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Table 1. System-development environment

1) Nouyaku-navi judgment server

Server machine Dell PowerEdge650Pentium 4 2.40 GHz, Memory: 256 MB, HDD: 80 GB

OS/Web Server FedoraCore1(Linux)Kernel 2.4.22-1.2115.nptlsoftware Apache 2.0.47 (Fedora)Database MySQL 3.23.58, Master file: approximately 50 MB

Programming language PHP4.3.3

2) Support system for creation of pesticide use (operating environment)

OS/PC/Browser Windows XP Professional/ Windows XP Home Edition/Windows 2000 ProfessionalInternet Explorer Version 6.0 or higherMemory: 128 MB or higherScreen resolution: 1024 x 768 pixels or greater recommendedHard disk with 10 MB free disk space is needed

Programming Visual Basic Ver 6.0environment/language

3) i-Appli equipped with a barcode reader for the JAN codes (operating environment)

Cellular phone model NTT DoCoMo FOMA900, 901, MOVA505, 506

Programming JAVA(i-Appli), iáppli Development Kit for DoJaenvironment/ language DoJa3.0 for MOVA, DoJa3.5 for FOMA

http://www.nttdocomo.co.jp/p_s/imode/java/

Creation of pesticide use plans

In the support functions for creation ofpesticide use plans, an application system forPCs is provided that enables easy creation andjudgment of pesticide use plans and spraycalendars. When the "gJudgment" button isclicked after a pesticide use plan is prepared,the plan is sent to the Nouyaku-navi judgmentserver via the Internet. After the plan’spropriety is judged by the Nouyaku-naviserver, the judgment is automatically displayed(Fig. 3).

Characteristics of the Nouyaku-navijudgment server

The judgment function for pesticide use plansin the Navigation System for AppropriatePesticide Use is implemented on the Nouyaku-navi judgment server (Nanseki, Sugahara and

Kikuchi, 2003). The Nouyaku-navi judgmentserver (http://nouyaku-navi.info/) is designed sothat users can intuitively understand the mainpoints of complicated results regarding thepropriety of pesticide application by means ofjudgment systems which enable users tounderstand the reasons for the judgment/warning and by contriving the user interfaceaccordingly. The applicable conditions forpesticides are wide-ranging, such as applicablecrop, applicable pest and weed, purpose ofuse, frequency of use, total frequency of useof active ingredient, time of use, instructionsfor use, applicable region, applicable site,applicable soil, dilution, quantity of use,quantity sprayed, fumigation time, fumigationtemperature, and so on. In the latest version,judgments are performed on applicable crop,applicable pest and weed, frequency of use,total frequency of use of active ingredient, pre-harvest interval, dilution, and quantity of use

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(if units are consistent). The judgment systemdisplays the reason why a planned pesticideapplication was regarded as inappropriate.

To make an intuitively-recognizabledisplay of the results, high-priority judgmentitems are singled out by investigating theneeds of farms. The user interface is similarlydevised. For example, signals using red(suspected to be illegal) and yellow (cautionneeded), similar to traffic lights, are employedin the warning description in order ofimportance.

Structure of the Nouyaku-navijudgment server

The Nouyaku-navi judgment server consists ofa database of pesticide registration information,a judgment module and an interface (Fig. 4).The interface is used to input the data onapplication plans and application records usedfor judgment to the judgment module, and to

pre-treat the data. It is also used to displaythe consequences of the judgment to users.The judgment module checks the data on theplans and records against the database todetermine whether the plans meet applicableconditions.

When the database of pesticideregistration information is created, the pesticideregistration information of the IncorporatedAdministrative Agency Agricultural ChemicalsInspection Station is analyzed. Based on theresults, we devise a system by which theinformation is automatically converted into aform suitable for use in automatic judgment bythe Nouyaku-navi judgment server, thusenabling reconstruction of the pesticideregistration information database. Among thepesticide registration information, sometimesfine print or footnotes describe the applicableconditions such as frequency of use, totalfrequency of use of active ingredient, pre-harvest interval, applicable crop and applicable

Fig. 3. Screen sample of the support system for creating pesticide use plans.

A judgment is made by the Nouyaku-navi judgment server

A registration number of the pesticide is searched from a pesticide product name or its usage

The code is searched from a name of pest or weed

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pest and weed. For this reason, there was theproblem that compiling only the pesticideregistration information into the database wasnot enough for automatic judgment viacomputer. However, compiling and/or updatingthe interpreted applicable conditions manuallywhenever the pesticide registration informationis updated requires a great amount ofmanpower and may entail human error.

To solve this problem, a conversionsystem was devised which analyzes all theapplicable conditions in the currently availablepesticide registration information andautomatically converts it into a form suitablefor judgment by the computer (Sugahara,Nanseki and Endo, 2005). This system enablesconstruction of a pesticide database for theNouyaku-navi judgment server. The deviseddata conversion system has the advantage thatit can provide labor savings and preventhuman error from occurring because the data isconverted according to rules set in advance.However, the present system cannot convert allthe data.

NEW FUNCTIONS IN THE NOUYAKU-NAVIJUDGMENT SERVER

Functional enhancements and improvementsbased on the results of the demonstrationexperiment in 2004 are as follows:

New function 1: Judgment function bycrop name

The old version of the Nouyaku-navi judgmentserver had the problem that it could not judgeby crop name because it needed to specifycrop codes in pesticide use plans. Therefore,the new version is designed to enable users toassign their own “crop name” by choosing alltargeted crop codes on the server prior tojudgment (Fig. 5). Thus, in creating a pesticideuse plan, when the user designates a “cropname” set beforehand, judgment by the servercan be made by the use of all thecorresponding crop codes.

Fig. 4. Data flow in the Nouyaku-navi judgment server

農農農農薬薬薬薬ナビナビナビナビ判定判定判定判定ササササーーーーババババ

Database of the pesticide registration information in the Agricultural Chemicals Inspection Station

農薬登録情報

Judgment server database

デ タベ ス

Conversion table ・・・・Frequency of use ・・・・Total frequency of use of active ingredient ・・・・Pre-harvest interval ・・・・etc. ・ Pre-harvest

interval

Data conversion tool

Interface of judgment module 判定モジュール

Inquiry Results of judgment

Pesticide use plans and Data on the application records

User

Nouyaku-navi judgment server

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Various displays (detailed, brief, color, and monochrome) are available by the XML output

Monochrome display suitable for printout

Specifying a crop name enables a judgment from all crop codes provided by the server

Easy-to-see color display

Fig. 5. Screen sample displaying the results of the judgment

Not applicable pest or weed

Applicable information of the pesticide named the same product name because the pesticide in question is designated as a cancelled pesticide

Beyond the dilution ratio prescribed (too high)

Under the dilution ratio recommended (too low)

Applicable information is displayed by clicking pesticide registration numbers.

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New function 2: Judgment bypesticide product name

The old version had the problem of beingunable to judge by the pesticide commonnames usually used by farmers and agriculturalextension advisers because judgment requiredspecification of pesticide registration numbers.To solve this problem, the new version isdesigned to make a judgment by automaticallysearching all the pesticide registration numberscorresponding to the pesticide common namespecified by a user.

New function 3: Judgment by name ofinsect or weed

The old version had the problem of beingunable to judge by name of pest or weedbecause judgment required specification of thename codes of pest or weed. Therefore, thenew version is designed to make a judgmentby automatically searching the name codes ofpest or weed corresponding to the namespecified by the users.

New function 4: Various forms andstyles for displaying the consequencesof the judgment

The old version was designed to outputjudgment results in HyperText MarkupLanguage (HTML) form. It was difficult tochange the output style or form in response tothe needs of individual users. Therefore, in thenew version, a new system which enablesjudgment results to be output in ExtensibleMarkup Language (XML) form is adopted.With this output system it becomes possibleto display the results in various styles orforms such as detailed or brief display, easy-to-see color display, and monochrome displaywhich is suitable for printout (Fig. 5).

PRIOR JUDGMENT AND REGISTRATION OFPESTICIDE APPLICATION RECORDS AT THE

TIME OF THE ACTUAL APPLICATION

Using this function enables users to integrallyperform prior judgment at the time of theactual application and registration of theapplication records (Fig. 6). As a result, userscan perform a judgment on the propriety of the

application, and if it is determined asappropriate, they can immediately register therecord of the application on the system. Inaddition, users can easily check the registrationinformation of pesticides intended for use inpest control while they are working in thefields or at the pesticide storage lockers.

This function is accomplished by asystem consisting of the judgment server andcellular phones. When users access the URLfor the cellular phone version of the Nouyaku-navi via cellular phones and input a pesticideregistration number or a Japanese ArticleNumber (JAN) code, they can browse thepesticide registration information. In addition,pesticide use plans judged by the server inadvance (the results can be displayed by cropor field) are displayed. When the users select“Planning of the field work schedule”, a list ofpesticides planned for use before and after thedate of working is displayed with the date onwhich a pesticide was/is to be used (numberof days to be displayed can be changed). Apesticide of which the registration number,name, abbreviation, and type matches issimultaneously displayed. Users can judge thepropriety of use by selecting the pesticidesintended to be applied from the pesticide listdisplayed. In addition, when users want toapply new pesticides which have not beenregistered in the plans, the pesticides areadded to the existing plans by clicking the“New entry” button.

When users select pesticides, twojudgment results, “judgment up to the presentdate” or “judgment from tomorrow” aredisplayed. In the former, a judgment isperformed on the pesticide use plans, theactual use records up to the date of judgment,and the pesticides planned to be used thistime. In the latter, a judgment is performed onall the plans and records including thepesticide use plans from tomorrow. If usersselect pesticides planned to be used tomorrow,the date of use is changed to the present dayand the pesticides are excluded from the targetof judgment, for example. In the cellular phoneversion, the items for judgment are applicablecrop, frequency of use, total frequency of useof active ingredient, pre-harvest interval andothers. When a plan does not meet theseconditions, a warning is displayed with a redsignal. Moreover, for a pesticide whose

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A plan is chosen from a list of pesticide use plans.

A common cellular phone with camera can read bar-codes

using a bar-code reader.

A dedicated i-Applican accomplish an

easier judgment procedure.

Fig. 6. Prior judgment and registration of the applicationrecords at the time of the actual application.

A display of judgment results. Attention is attracted by a warning signal. Two types of judgment can be displayed: judgment based on the application record and the application plan and judgment based on the application record, the application plan, and future plans for application

To apply the pesticide and register the application record or to judge propriety of use alone can be selected.

Pesticides available are searched from the application plans and the results are displayed. A pesticide applicable can be chosen. New entry of pesticides is also available.

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frequency of use has reached that prescribedin the standards for pest control and cannotbe used for the next application, the systemcalls attention to this with a yellow signal.

When the Nouyaku-navi judgment serveris used via a PC, user authentication isperformed by inputting a login ID and apassword. However, authentication procedure ismore complicated when the system is used viacellular phone from farming fields. To solvethis problem, users can in advance registerindividual identifying information (for example,serial number) of the cellular phone to theNouyaku-navi judgment server. This informationis sent to the server from the cellular phoneand checked against the registered informationto identify the user. Thus, keyed entry at thetime of login to the server is unnecessaryunder this system.

PROBLEMS IN THE DEMONSTRATIONEXPERIMENT AND THE SOLUTIONS

IN THE NEW SYSTEM

In the open demonstration experimentperformed for about one month from September17 to October 18 in 2004, approximately 450individuals (people involved in the developmentof the system were excluded) were registeredas users. The experiment demonstrated strongneeds from farming fields. The occupations ofthe registered users showed component ratioshigher in farmers and workers of agriculturalcompanies (21%), agricultural extension advisers(the present extension instructors, 17%) andprefectural officials (16%). Persons involved inagriculture accounted for 70% when workersfor the Japan Agricultural Cooperatives (JA)(8%) and researchers in agricultural experimentstations (8%) were added (Fig. 7). The ratiosof distributors/mass merchandisers (5%),consumers (3%) and co-op workers (2%) weresmall. However, judgment of pesticide useplans was most frequently performed by theco-op workers, revealing a strong interest inthe Nouyaku-navi system among this group.Others included pesticide manufacturers, foodmanufacturers, software makers, othercompanies, officials from the Ministry ofAgriculture, Forestry and Fishery, and variousorganizations.

An open demonstration experiment onthe improved version of the Nouyaku-navi

presented in this paper has been in progresssince February 15, 2005. The number ofregistered users had reached approximately 850as of July 19, suggesting a strong socialinterest.

The challenges revealed in the 2004demonstration experiment were as follows: (1)Improvement of judgment accuracy (on cropcodes) and expansion of judgment functions(judgment by pesticide product name andothers); (2) Link-up with the systems forfarming records and pesticide applicationrecords; (3) Development of a version forcellular phones and an on-site warning systembefore the actual control practice; (4)Development of support functions for creatingguidelines on pest control, spray calendars,and pesticide use plans, according to thecommunities or JAs concerned; (5) Securitymeasures for the systems; and (6) Datapreparation and pilot operation forcommercialization of the systems (Table 2).

In the new version introduced in thispaper, judgments by crop name, pesticideproduct name, or name of insect or weed, canbe performed. Other new functionsaccomplished are as follows: Integration ofprior judgment of application plans andregistration of application records, support forcellular phone users, on-site warning systemusing bar-codes without keyed entry, andfunctions for providing data on therecommendation for pest control. Furthermore,security measures are being promoted, such asa user authentication system using the serialnumber of a cellular phone, and encrypted datacommunication, and a test installation hasalready started. Thus, many of the problemsclarified in 2004 have already been solved. Theremaining problems for commercialization of theNouyaku-navi system include cooperation withthe existing farming records and pesticideapplication records, establishment of themethod for using the support systems forcreating guidelines on pest control and spraycalendars, preparation of pesticide-products’JAN code data, and others.

CONCLUSION

In Good Agriculture Practice (GAP), it isnecessary to understand various risks inagricultural production, to regularize concrete

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21%

17%

16%8%

8%

5%

3%

2%

20%

Farmer or worker ofagricultural companyAgricultural extensionadviser

Prefectural official

JA worker

Researcher ofagriculturalexperimental s tationWorker of distributionindustry or massmerchandiserConsumer

Fig. 7. Composition of users registered in the demonstration experiment of 2004.

Table 2. Challenges clarified in the 2004 demonstration experiment and the currentstate of the systems

Challenges clarified in the 2004 Details of the challenges and the state of the demonstration experiment new system

Improvement of judgment accuracy C:Judgment by crop name (on crop codes) and expansion of C:Judgment by pesticide product name judgment functions (e.g., judgment C:Judgment by name of pest and weed by pesticide product name)

Integration with the systems for farming N:Integration of functions of pesticide use plan, records and pesticide application records judgment and application records

P:Cooperation with the existing systems for farming records and pesticide application records

Development of a cellular phone-enabled C:Cellular phone-enabled judgment system system and an on-site warning system C:On-site warning system without keyed entry prior to the application using pesticide barcodes

Development of support functions for C:Data acquisition function for recommendation on creation of recommendations on pest pest control control, spray calendars, and pesticide P:Establishment of technologies for applying the use plans according to the state of the judgment system remains a problem communities or JAs concerned

Security measures for the system C:User authentication through identification numbers of cellular phonesC:Encryption of the data (by use of https and others)

Data preparation and test installation C:Start of test installation for actual operation for commercialization of the system P:Preparation of the JAN code data

Notes: C: completed, N: nearly completed, P: partly completed

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countermeasures, and to practice them infarming activities (e.g., Tagami, 2005). Forpesticide use, GAP is performed according tothe following procedure:

(1) Recognize risks of pesticide use (safetyof agricultural products, environmentalpollution, welfare and safety of workers,etc.),

(2) Clarify application procedures forpesticides,

(3) Clarify the risks of pesticide use in eachapplication procedure,

(4) Devise measures to avoid the risks ofpesticide application,

(5) Institutionalize risk management ofpesticide use and countermeasures,

(6) Record the contents of the actualimplementation, including the pesticideapplication records.In this way, the risks of pesticide use in

GAP include a wide range of items from healthdamage in pesticide applicators toenvironmental pollution by disposal of pesticidewaste. Among these, the target of theNouyaku-navi is the pesticide misapplicationrisk which is directly associated with the safetyand security of agricultural products. In otherwords, the Nouyaku-navi is a system aimed atminimizing the risks of pesticide use byperforming a prior judgment on the propriety ofpesticide application to meet the standards foruse set out in the law or contracts andpreventing misapplication by users, as well asby supporting objective records of pesticideapplication. From this viewpoint, the Nouyaku-navi is one of the systems supporting apractical implementation of GAP from theaspect of risk management on pesticideapplication.

Recently, various traceability systems foragricultural products have been suggested andtheir commercialization has been promoted todeal with consumers’ interest in the safety andsecurity of agricultural products. Althoughthese systems often include functions for ex-post checking of pesticide application records,there are many remaining problems from theviewpoint of risk management of pesticidemisapplication. To solve these problems, it isnecessary to develop systems with differentconcepts from those of the conventionaltraceability systems. In other words, theprocess required for risk management of

pesticide misapplication is not a flow ofdisclosure of the information on distributionpathways, but the following:

• disclosure of the information on pesticideapplication records

• registration of pesticide applicationrecords

• ex-post check on pesticide applicationrecords, but a flow of judgment on thepropriety of pesticide use

• automatic registration of pesticideapplication records

• disclosure of the information on pesticideapplication records.The former is a process based on the

concept of the conventional traceabilitysystems, and the latter is the concept of theNouyaku-navi system.

However, the two systems mustobviously be integrated. When pesticideapplication records created by the automaticprocess from “Judgment on the propriety ofpesticide use” to “Automatic registration ofpesticide application records” under theNouyaku-navi system are incorporated into theexisting traceability systems, a seamlessintegration of these systems will beaccomplished. Thus, it is expected that thesafety of agricultural products will be furtherimproved and enhance the security ofconsumers by collaboration between theNouyaku-navi and the existing traceabilitysystems.

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