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The Asahi Shimbun
National Report
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By TAKAHIRO TAKENOUCHI/ Staff Writer
May 12, 2026 at 16:39 JST
Officials hold a flexible perovskite solar cell during a ceremony in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, on May 11. (Takahiro Takenouchi)
KASHIWA, Chiba Prefecture—In a first for Japan, a pioneering experiment is underway to grow rice under a canopy of next-generation solar cells, a project aimed at solving two of the nation’s most pressing issues: food sustainability and clean energy.
The project, which began with a ceremonial rice-planting on May 11 at Chiba University’s Kashiwanoha Campus in Kashiwa, tests the concept of “solar sharing” by stretching thin, flexible perovskite solar panels over a paddy.
The goal is to generate electricity and cultivate crops on the same plot of land to boost farm income and contribute to climate goals.
Perovskite solar cells are a Japanese invention that are lighter, thinner and more pliable than conventional silicon panels. Their development is closely tied to the region, as Chiba Prefecture is a leading global producer of iodine, a key material in their production.
Solar sharing, also a domestic innovation, is gaining traction to make farming more economically sustainable.
Proponents say the added revenue from electricity generation can support agricultural operations, while research suggests the panels’ shade can protect crops from the damaging effects of the intense summer heat.
At the Chiba University site, researchers will spend three years studying the power output and durability of the perovskite cells, manufactured by Sekisui Chemical Co., while monitoring their impact on rice yield and quality.
To provide a direct comparison, traditional silicon solar panels have been installed on an adjacent plot. Researchers expect the lighter perovskite cells to prove advantageous, requiring less structural support and creating fewer obstacles for farm machinery.
The electricity generated by the project will power facilities on the university campus.
“I hope that rice cultivation nurtured under the latest solar power technology will become a model for a sustainable society,” Chiba University President Kotaro Yokote said at the ceremony.
Mitsuhiro Higashi, head of Terra Inc., a Sosa-based company managing the project’s solar sharing component, hopes to see the concept expand.
“We want to multiply these two environmental technologies with ties to Chiba and spread them to the world,” he said.
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