Opium Poppies Spreading Rapidly Across Japan

May 02, 2026 | News On Japan

SAGA, May 02, 2026 (News On Japan) - A surge in the growth of illegal opium poppies across Japan has prompted authorities to intensify eradication efforts, with around 10,000 plants removed in just two hours in Saga Prefecture, as officials urge the public to report any sightings.

The plant, known as AtsumigeshI, belongs to the poppy family and is used as a raw material for the narcotic opium, with cultivation and distribution subject to criminal penalties under Japanese law.

Despite its illegality, the plant is increasingly being found in everyday locations, including along waterways, roadside plantings, parking lot corners, and railway lines, areas where human intervention is limited.

Authorities say the species has an exceptionally strong ability to reproduce, with seeds carried by soil, fertilizers, and bird droppings, allowing it to spread and take root in unexpected places across nearly all regions of Japan.

In April, the plant was also discovered growing among fields of blue nemophila flowers at Uminonakamichi Seaside Park in Higashi Ward, Fukuoka City, where similar incidents were reported the previous year and the plants were subsequently incinerated.

AtsumigeshI typically blooms between April and May, prompting the government to designate the period from May 1st to June 30th as a nationwide campaign to eradicate illegal cannabis and poppies.

Officials from the Kyushu Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare’s Narcotics Control Department have been responding to reports across the region, continuing removal operations.

In fiscal 2025, approximately 35,000 plants were cut down in Fukuoka Prefecture and 29,000 in Saga Prefecture.

Authorities caution that not all poppy-family plants are illegal, noting that ornamental varieties such as poppies are legally cultivated.

Illegal AtsumigeshI plants can be identified by their leaves, which grow wrapped tightly around the stem without a stalk, and by their relatively shallow leaf indentations compared to legal varieties.

In Saga Prefecture, a team of 13 people removed approximately 10,000 plants over two hours, filling more than 40 garbage bags.

With the species continuing to spread in areas that are difficult to monitor, authorities are calling on the public to report any suspected illegal poppies.

Source: FBS

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