High School Students Help Out Tangerine Farmers
High school students are helping tangerine farmers in western Japan with the harvest to make up for a shortage of seasonal workers amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Farmers in the city of Uwajima, Ehime Prefecture, are having difficulty recruiting seasonal workers from across the country this year, even though the harvest season has already begun.
The city is home to a local variety of Japanese tangerine known as "Unshu mikan."
On Sunday, 12 senior high school students in the prefecture responded to a call from a local agricultural cooperative.
They headed for the tangerine orchards after having their body temperatures and health conditions checked.
At the orchard of farmer Nakai Yasuhito, two students carefully picked golden-colored tangerines one by one with scissors in the way that the farmer had taught them. Nakai said he was really grateful to the students for their help.
One of the students said she decided to take part to give what help she could to the farmers. She said she wants to work hard so the tangerines can be delivered to consumers safely.
A total of about 300 students plan to help the farmers by working weekends through late December following requests for help from about 80 farmers.
