Latest news with #DonQuijote
NHK
2 days ago
- Business
- NHK
Japan's smaller retailers start applying for stockpiled rice
Japan's agriculture ministry has begun accepting applications from small and mid-sized retailers to buy government-stockpiled rice. A total of 80,000 tons harvested in 2021 are up for sale through no-bid contracts. The ministry says 60,000 tons are available to the small and mid-sized retailers. The remainder will go to rice shops equipped with polishing facilities. Agriculture Minister Koizumi Shinjiro has projected that with distribution cost included, the retail price before tax will be around 1,800 yen, or 12 dollars and 50 cents per five kilograms. That's less than half the current supermarket price. Recently, consumers have seen the price of Japan's staple grain hiked to over 4,000 yen. In the meantime, large retailers are beginning to receive their shipments. The operator of discount chain Don Quijote plans to start selling the rice in Tokyo from early June, and then expand the number of stores across the country. Aeon says it will start selling it at some of its stores from Sunday and Monday. The retail giant has bought 20,000 tons, the largest amount among retailers. A 5-kilogram bag will be priced at about 2,100 yen including tax. The bags are limited to one per family. Meanwhile, Japan's Transport Minister Nakano Hiromasa has said he will set up an office to support distribution of the rice. The office will support the drawing up of adjustments between the agriculture ministry and logistics operators that transport the rice. Nakano said he will cooperate closely with the agriculture ministry to prevent distribution bottlenecks.
4 days ago
- Business
Don Quijote to Sell Govt-Stockpiled Rice Only to Members
News from Japan May 28, 2025 19:53 (JST) Tokyo, May 28 (Jiji Press)--The parent of discount store operator Don Quijote Co. plans to sell government-stockpiled rice under a discretionary contract only to the company's app members in order to prevent it from being resold for profit, officials said Wednesday. Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp., the parent of Don Quijote, also plans to limit the quantity of government-stockpiled rice that customers can purchase to prevent resales. The company is slated to start selling the rice at some Don Quijote outlets in the Tokyo metropolitan area early next week, then expand the sales area. Household goods supplier Iris Ohyama Inc., which has similarly offered to sell the stockpiled rice under a discretionary contract, will limit customer purchases to one bag per person per month on its online shopping site. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.] Jiji Press
Bloomberg
5 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Japan Pauses Stockpile Sales as Retailers Snap Up Rice
Japan paused its sale of rice reserves after seeing a fast response from retailers, in a positive sign for the government's efforts to temper soaring rice prices and ease consumers' cost-of-living concerns ahead of an election this summer. Major players including Rakuten Group Inc. and Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp., the parent company of popular discount store Don Quijote, were among the some 70 retailers to secure a portion of the 200,000 metric tons of the staple grain on sale Tuesday, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Japan Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
At least 19 retailers applied for no-bid contracts for rice, Koizumi says
At least 19 retailers have applied for the government's no-bid contract procedure to purchase stockpiled rice, farm minister Shinjiro Koizumi said Tuesday, raising hopes of rice prices finally going down. Koizumi said during a news conference that the ministry is planning to sign contracts with retailers that have applied by Wednesday and hand them the stockpiled rice as early as Thursday. The retailers are set to receive a total of 90,824 metric tons, or about a third of the 300,000 tons the government plans to release overall. 'The rice is on track to hit stores in the first week of June,' Koizumi said Tuesday. Pan Pacific International Holdings, which operates Don Quijote stores nationwide, has applied to purchase 15,000 tons, while Rakuten, supermarket chain operator OK Corp. and a subsidiary of Iris Ohyama, a home appliance company, have applied for 10,000 tons each. Major retailer Aeon said Tuesday that it plans to purchase 20,000 tons of rice and have it for sale by early next month. Companies with rice millers, such as sake manufacturers, have offered to polish the stockpiled rice, the farm minister said, amid concerns that the extra step could slow retailers down in selling the rice. The ministry will help match retailers with such companies, he added. Koizumi said Monday that the government plans to release 300,000 tons of unpolished rice through a no-bid contract procedure and hopes to see the average supermarket price for a 5 kilogram bag of rice go down to around ¥2,000. The weekly average price hit a record ¥4,285 for a 5 kg bag in the week through May 18. More rice will be sold to retailers if the 300,000 tons is not enough, Koizumi added on Monday. 'The next step will be to figure out how the rice can be sold at smaller shops and supermarkets,' he said Tuesday. 'I've told our rice task force that we may need to revise (restrictions) on no-bidding contracts within a week.' For now, applicants for the no-bid contracts are restricted to major retailers that have a record of selling at least 10,000 tons of rice annually. The stockpiled rice was initially auctioned off to the National Federation of Agricultural Co-operative Associations (Zen-Noh) and other distributors with the goal of lowering prices by increasing supply. But as prices continued to rise, the government switched to no-bid contracts after Koizumi replaced his predecessor Taku Eto over a rice gaffe. Unlike auctions, which go to the highest bidder, no-bid contracts allow the government to sell the rice at a lower price. The ministry also decided to cut out the middleman and sell the stockpiled rice directly to retailers for faster distribution.
Yomiuri Shimbun
5 days ago
- Business
- Yomiuri Shimbun
19 Firms Apply to Buy 90,000 Tons of Japan Government Rice; Could Appear on Store Shelves by First Week of June
The Yomiuri Shimbun Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks at the House of Councillors Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Committee on Tuesday. The Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry had received applications from 19 companies to buy state-held reserves of rice through 'discretionary contracts' as of 9 a.m. Tuesday, agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi told reporters Tuesday after a Cabinet meeting. The total amount applied for was 90,824 tons, part of the 300,000 tons to be released through the contracts in which the government will set the price of the grain. Once the deals are closed, the rice is expected to be delivered to the companies on Thursday at the earliest. If all goes well, it could appear on store shelves by the first week of June. The applicants include Pan Pacific International Holdings Corp. — a leading retailer that operates Don Quijote discount stores — Sundrug Co., Rakuten Group, Inc. and OK Corp, the ministry said. Major retailers handling at least 10,000 tons of rice annually are currently eligible for the contracts. Koizumi has considered expanding the scope of applicants to small and medium-sized supermarkets and local rice shops, saying, 'The next step is to determine how to deliver the rice to these places satisfactorily.' The ministry will consider revising the details of the contracts in the future, Koizumi said. By shifting from public bidding to discretionary contracts, the ministry aims to deliver the rice directly to retailers that are close to consumers and have it available at supermarkets and other stores for around ¥2,000 per 5 kilograms (excluding tax) by early June. 'We will do our utmost to alleviate the public's concerns and prevent further decline in rice consumption.' Koizumi said Tuesday during a policy speech at the House of Councillors Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Committee.
