As health awareness rises, a new initiative in Japan has emerged—the Tsurugaoka Fecal Donation Room, aimed at collecting feces from healthy individuals to extract beneficial gut bacteria for developing treatments for complex diseases.

Located in Tsurugaoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, the facility allows donors who pass strict eligibility criteria to receive up to 5000 yen (approximately 1014 New Taiwan dollars) per donation. According to reports, Metagen Therapeutics operates this program, focusing on using the collected gut microbiota to develop new drugs.

The facility features dedicated hygiene areas where donors can use special toilets. The donated feces are processed to extract bacteria, which are then sent to a facility in Kawasaki for further drug development. Clinical trials are planned to start in 2026, with the aim of launching the first oral medication by 2032.

Notably, donors must be healthy individuals aged 18 to 65 and must go through multiple screening processes to ensure the safety and efficacy of the donations.