Japan is reversing its long-standing policy of encouraging rice farmers to limit production, a strategy maintained for over 50 years to keep rice prices stable and relatively high. This shift comes amid rising rice shortages and soaring prices, prompting the government to expand budgets to support increased rice cultivation. The government is now urging farmers to produce more rice, including expanding the practice of "double cropping" (harvesting rice twice a year), which had declined under previous reduction policies. This method is gaining renewed attention as a means to boost supply, with its cultivation spreading from limited southern regions of Kyushu to areas west of the Kanto region, potentially influenced by warming climate conditions. The policy change includes direct income compensation proposals from opposition parties to support farmers during this transition.