The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) officially decided on the Agricultural Research and Innovation Strategy 2026 on July 21, 2026. The strategy positions biotech including foodtech as having "extremely high expectations," strengthening from 2025's "high expectations" characterization. New market acquisition additions include automated harvesting in plant factories with AI environmental management, alternative food safety evaluation and cost reduction, and AI-driven quality control.

Following November 2025's Japan Growth Strategy Council positioning foodtech among 17 strategic fields, a June 2026 public-private investment roadmap draft covered four domains: plant factories, land-based aquaculture, food machinery, and novel foods. The government targets tripling agricultural and food export value by 2030, with protein supply expansion as priority.

Future innovation strategy emphasizes plant and microbial bioactive substance production, with research and development of foods utilizing microorganisms like koji fungi promoted to expand protein supply possibilities.