Kazuma Nishizutsuji × Juna Kano: Part 1 "What Future Ideas Support Agri-Ventures?"

This episode's guest is Kazuma Nishizumi, CEO of My Farm, a pioneer in agri-ventures with ventures ranging from rental farms to agricultural business schools. WAKAMON researcher Tama Kano (Dentsu Inc. Kansai Branch) asked him about his business, his own work style, and the future of youth and agriculture.

A Major Shift in How "Agriculture" is Perceived

Kano: As your senior from university and someone who also pursued agricultural studies but ended up in a different industry, I have many questions for you. You've been featured in magazine interviews lately. Do you sense any reaction from young people, especially those in their 20s, like "farming sounds cool"?

Nishizaki: I've felt it intensely these past few years. When My Farm started in 2007, right after the Lehman Shock, we also saw interest, but that was from an older generation. People who sensed the economy might decline for the first time since the high-growth era turned to farming for their future, for their children, or in a sense, to "secure their position."

Kano: That's very pragmatic. Around that time, interest in farming among "adults" grew with trends like vegetable gardening and weekend farming. Then, around 2008-09, terms like "nogyaru" (urban youth) emerged, making farming feel closer to young people.

Nishizutsuji: But even then, it still didn't resonate at all with people in their 20s. The real turning point for genuine interest among 20-somethings was definitely the Great East Japan Earthquake. After the disaster, we saw a shift where young people started coming to agriculture in increasing numbers. Even at the Agri Innovation University, the agricultural management business school run by My Farm, we've had quite a few students recently.

Kano: Do they genuinely want to become farmers and see it as a kind of "double schooling"?

Nishizutsuji: I think when people hear "becoming a farmer" in society, they still imagine someone dedicated solely to farming. But among the young people coming to our university now, there aren't any aspiring farmers who just want to grow cabbages in a field all day.

Kano: So they're thinking about developing their own businesses. They see it as part of the so-called "sixth industry."

Nishizutsuji: To give a clear example, I feel more people are aiming to be "multi-functional producers" – not just growers, but people who want to run a cafe with its own fields in the countryside.

Expanding Business with Future Vision

Kano: The way My Farm expands its business is fascinating. Starting with rental plots, services for plot users emerged, then a university training farmers, and now it's expanding like an ecosystem centered around agriculture. Was this originally part of a grand plan?

Nishizutsuji: It's not so much a plan as it is my way of thinking. When I want to do something new, I don't just look at the "present" of this space. I look at the "future" – what kind of space this might become in about five years – and then charge ahead, building the business around that vision.

Kano: I see. As we grow older, we tend to get stuck in immediate problem-solving, right? Young people today face such overwhelming anxiety about even getting a job that they're forced to struggle with practical, immediate challenges rather than pursuing dreams. In that context, your future-oriented approach feels refreshing.

Nishizaki: Conversely, the so-called corporate middle-aged men focus on the present. So it's only natural our perspectives clash. They think, "We don't have this, so let's create it." But people in their 20s and 30s were born into an era of abundance. They have little firsthand experience of "lack," so they fundamentally think about how to utilize existing resources. Our approaches to building ideas are fundamentally different.

Kano: That's really interesting. Listening to young social venture founders, you often hear that mindset of "changing how we see what already exists and adding value." In that sense, My Farm's approach of using existing "abandoned farmland" shares that common thread.

Nishizutsuji: My Farm's business also started from the premise that abandoned farmland still holds plenty of potential. I think this way of thinking is common among those now called social entrepreneurs.

Is the president the lowest-ranking person at My Farm?

Kano: I heard you moved headquarters from Kyoto to Suma last year to show local greengrocers you wanted to contract with how serious you were. And that if you messed up, you'd shave your head... (laughs). I feel like it's hard to match the kind of strong will Nishizaki-san has.

Nishizui: My basic stance is that "no one understands me." Because I only look toward the future when I act. It's incredibly difficult to get customers or company colleagues focused on the present to truly grasp, say, the benefits five years down the line. So, I desperately try to make them understand. I have absolute confidence that I'll be proven right in five years, which is why I'll relocate headquarters or even shave my head.

Kano: I imagine the headquarters move sparked debate internally. How do you interact with colleagues and perceive the organization?

Nishizutsuji: Our company is a bit unusual—I, the president, am at the very bottom of the organizational chart. In most organizations, you climb upward, but here, you move down to advance in rank. My philosophy is that customers and the field are always closest to what's right now. The further you move from them, the more you start talking about the future. When customer requests come in and we discuss them, if we're positioned above them, "escalating" things becomes a significant hurdle. That's why, as an organization, we fundamentally value the president never saying "no." I always emphasize that all decisions are made by comparing them against the future.

Kano: It gives the impression of "deepening" rather than "fighting the higher-ups" – that's a new way of thinking. Was there anything you referenced when building this kind of organization?

Nishizumi: No, not really. But in 2011, the company collapsed once, and I stepped down as president. I reflected deeply on why that happened, and you could say this approach was born from that experience. In that sense, I'm like former Prime Minister Abe – someone who failed once and made a comeback within the company. So, compared to someone who's always been in a venture company, I think my ability to sense when "this is going to break" has become sharper (laughs).

Kano: When you started the company, you began with someone you met at an incubation office, so it felt like you were comrades, right? At the company, you seem conscious of the idea of "doing things together." I get the impression you avoid hierarchical structures and instead have everyone working side-by-side with their own roles.

Nishizutsuji: Well, I only have one year of corporate experience, and I never held a managerial role there. I wasn't the type to lead classes or clubs in school either. I've never really managed people in my life. I'm not good at that part. But I've developed quite a bit of foresight... So I leave management to others and just end up saying nice things.

At the company, I always end up saying things that nobody understands, but that's because I'm genuinely thinking about the future... For example, I strongly pushed to create a beekeeping class at the Agri Innovation University, and it's always full.

Kano: Bees? Like methods to protect them as their numbers decline?

Nishizutsuji: Everyone talks about that, but I'm completely different. Actually, honey doesn't spoil. If you just leave it alone, it turns into mead. So, from now on, I just harvest the honey, line it up at the direct sales store, and sell it over ten years. There's no business like that, right?

Kano: Zero inventory risk. Makes you realize farming is really interesting, huh? (laughs)

※The second part of this conversation will be updated on Wednesday, March 5th.

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【Wakamon Profile】
Dentsu Inc. Youth Research Department (nicknamed Wakamon) is a planning team that engages with the real lives and mindsets of young people, primarily high school and university students. We explore hints to brighten and invigorate the near future, starting from their "now." Drawing insights from them, we foresee the future and realize new businesses that foster better relationships between young people and society. Currently, 14 project members are based across our Tokyo headquarters, Kansai branch, and Chubu branch. Information is also shared on the Wakamon Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/wakamon.dentsu ).