Prior to the 1950s, most agriculture in Japan was "organic" because chemical fertilizers and pesticides were not used. Human waste, called "night soil" was collected by farmers and used as fertilizer. In the 1950s, the introduction of chemical pesticides reduced insect damage and increased crop yields. By the 1970s and 1980s, consumers worried about the health effects of chemical pesticides created a market for organically grown food crops. Organic produce is often distributed through cooperatives that link farmers directly to urban consumers, but it is gradually becoming more available in urban grocery stores that specialize in natural foods. Click on Pictures below to see farmers spraying chemical fertilizer in rice fields in the 1950s using a small machine.