Japan's Onion Train Dilemma Exposes Rural Transport Vulnerabilities The future of "onion trains" in Japan is uncertain, as a local train operator reviews its business and considers terminating an unprofitable route that delivers fresh onions from Hokkaido to the rest of the country.
This may seem like a localized issue affecting only farmers and consumers in northern Japan, but it reveals deeper vulnerabilities in rural transport infrastructure with far reaching implications for food security and regional economies.
The onion train route under review is critical to the transportation network that delivers nearly 29,000 tonnes of onions from Kitami, Hokkaido's largest producer, each year.