Particleboard manufacture is a valuable process for recycling woody waste that might otherwise be landfilled or burned. The process permits blending recycled materials with fiber from other sources to achieve specific properties. For example, limiting shorter recycled elements to the core and using longer elements from other sources on the surface can improve strength. Particleboard manufacture is a mature industry in Japan, but there are opportunities for improving the efficiency of the process. As oil prices continue to increase, the costs for transportation, adhesives, and energy for plant operation continue to increase. Particleboard manufacturers must compete with other industries for woody raw materials. Some recent policies that focus on woody biomass for energy make the situation even worse. The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery started a comprehensive program focusing on agricultural woody biomass resources, with clear goals for: 1) education, 2) technology development of transportation fuel such as bio-ethanol, 3) promotion and networking of local societies that use biomass resources, 4) research and development of technologies for using woody biomass and other potential natural resources, 5) initiatives for using biomass products and promoting recycling, and 6) technology transfer to other Asian countries. Most particleboard industries that use local woody wastes intend to improve efficiency by increasing their use of recycled material and supplementing energy for plant operation by burning material that is unsuitable for manufacturing particleboard.