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The Mainichi
14-05-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
News in Easy English: Rice prices in Japan finally go down a little bit
TOKYO -- In Japan, rice prices became lower for the first time in 18 weeks. This happened because the government started selling rice it had in storage. But experts say rice will still be expensive, because special rice with famous names is still very high-priced. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said on May 12 that supermarkets in Japan now sell rice at an average price of 4,214 yen (about $29) for 5 kilograms. This price is from April 28 to May 4. The price is two times as high as one year before. But it is 19 yen cheaper than the week before. Since mid-March, the government has started selling cheaper stored rice. It already sold about 210,000 tons. At first, not much of this rice reached supermarkets, but now it is slowly becoming easier to buy. This stored rice is usually sold mixed with other rice. It is called "blended rice." At stores, its prices are mostly between 3,500 yen and 4,000 yen (about $24 to $27) for 5 kg. The ministry also said the amount of blended rice at supermarkets is getting bigger each week. In March, blended rice was only around 19% of the total rice sold. By the end of April, it went up and became more than 30%. Most of the stored rice was bought by JA Zen-Noh. JA Zen-Noh is now quickly selling this rice to other sellers, so more rice will soon be in supermarkets. This can help rice prices fall again. Katsuhito Fuyuki, a professor at Tohoku University, said, "The cheaper stored rice is now coming to supermarkets. But famous-name rice like Koshihikari is still very expensive. Because of this, prices probably will not become much cheaper overall." (Japanese original by Hajime Nakatsugawa and Toru Watanabe, Business News Department) Vocabulary average: usual or normal price calculated from many prices. storage: a place where you keep something for later use. blended rice: cheaper rice often mixed from different kinds of rice. ton: a very heavy amount (1 ton = 1,000 kilograms). professor: a teacher at a university who knows a lot about something. famous-name rice (branded rice): special rice with a name that people know, like "Koshihikari". This rice usually costs more money. agriculture: work for growing plants and farming.
The Mainichi
13-05-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
Average rice price in Japan finally edges down but unlikely to fall significantly
TOKYO -- The nationwide average price of rice in Japan recently marked the first decline in 18 weeks following the release of government stockpiles, but an expert expects the average will not fall by a large margin as branded rice remains quite expensive. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries announced May 12 that the average price of rice sold in supermarkets nationwide from April 28 to May 4 was 4,214 yen (around $29) per 5 kilograms, including tax. This represents an increase of 2,108 yen (roughly $14) compared to the same period last year -- roughly twofold -- but it was 19 yen less than the all-time high recorded the previous week. Although the decrease in supermarket rice prices was slight, it marked the first decline in 18 weeks. The ministry believes that more than 30% of the sales volume consisted of affordable blended rice that includes government reserved rice. Whether the price drop will continue remains a focus going forward. Since mid-March, the government has released a total of about 210,000 metric tons of stockpiled rice in sequence. According to the ministry, 3,018 tons, or 1.4%, had reached retailers such as supermarkets by April 13, and the quantity appearing on store shelves is thought to be gradually increasing. Reserved rice is sold mixed with other rice and labeled as blended rice or multiple varieties. Much of the rice is apparently priced between 3,500 to 4,000 yen (approx. $24 to $27) per 5 kg, including tax. While not all blended rice contains stockpiled rice, the ministry's analysis of the sales volume, which is tallied with price data, showed that the ratio of blended rice was 19% for the week of March 10. As reserved rice began to be released from mid-March, the ratio gradually increased, marking 24% for the week of April 7, 28% for the week of April 14, and 31% for the week of April 21. The week starting April 28 is also estimated to have seen a ratio exceeding 30%. Of the approximately 210,000 tons released in two auctions, about 94%, or 199,000 tons, was bought by the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (JA Zen-Noh). According to the organization, some 32%, or around 63,000 tons, had been shipped to wholesalers as of May 8. As the agriculture ministry has requested JA Zen-Noh to supply wholesalers ahead of schedule, further price reductions are anticipated with the greater distribution of affordable stockpiled rice. Katsuhito Fuyuki, professor of agricultural market studies at Tohoku University's Graduate School of Agricultural Science, commented, "It seems that cheaper reserved rice has started to reach the retail end. On the other hand, branded rice such as Koshihikari remains at a high price, resulting in a small overall decline. The trading price of branded rice is quite high, and the overall price of rice is unlikely to fall significantly in the future."
The Mainichi
29-04-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
Rice prices in Japan up for 16th straight week, hit new high despite gov't reserve release
TOKYO -- Rice in Japan's supermarkets hit a record-high average of 4,220 yen including tax (some $30) for 5 kilograms over April 14 to 20, the country's agriculture ministry announced April 28, marking a 3-yen rise from the week prior and the 16th consecutive weekly increase. The announcement from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries comes as the average has also risen by 2,132 yen ($14.90) compared to the same period last year -- roughly doubling. Over a month has passed since the national government began to release reserve rice stockpiles in hopes of providing relief, but retail prices remain high. About 210,000 metric tons of reserve rice have been put up for sale in two rounds of bidding so far, with around 94%, or 199,270 tons, won by the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations (JA Zen-Noh). As of April 24, JA Zen-Noh had shipped about 47,000 tons to wholesalers. However, since it generally takes about two to three weeks for wholesalers' orders from JA Zen-Noh to reach supermarkets and other retailers, it is believed that only a limited amount of the reserve rice had reached store shelves during the survey period. Some local stores that procure rice from smaller regional wholesalers have reported that reserve rice sourced by major wholesalers is not reaching them. In response, on April 16 the government revised the rule that in principle prohibited trade of reserve rice between wholesalers. However, this rule was set to apply in principle only from the third round of reserve rice releases, which was held from April 23 to 25 and covered an additional 100,000 tons. Accordingly, local and small- to medium-sized supermarkets may not have yet received sufficient stocks of reserve rice, which is believed to have also affected survey results. Asked why rice prices remain high, Katsuhito Fuyuki, professor of agricultural market studies at Tohoku University's Graduate School of Agricultural Science, said, "It's possible that demand for rice has exceeded the government's forecasts." He added, "Wholesalers and others are anxious over a possible rice shortage in the summer as seen last year and are likely keeping inventories on hand, also possibly contributing to the high prices." (Japanese original by Hajime Nakatsugawa, Niigata Bureau)
The Mainichi
22-04-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
Rice prices in Japan continue to rise for 15 weeks in row despite release of gov't reserves
TOKYO -- Rice prices in Japan have continued to rise for 15 consecutive weeks despite the release of crops stockpiled by the government. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries announced April 21 that the average price of 5 kilograms of rice sold in supermarkets nationwide from April 7 to 13 was 4,217 yen (about $30) including tax. This marks an increase of 2,139 yen (around $15) from the same period last year and a rise of 3 yen from the previous week. The average price increased 15 weeks in a row, and was the highest recorded since data collection began in March 2022. To curb soaring rice prices, the Japanese government has been releasing reserve rice since mid-March. However, adequate quantities have not reached store shelves, and prices have yet to decline. According to the distribution status of the first released batch, announced by the agriculture ministry April 18, only 0.3% (426 metric tons) of the approximately 140,000 tons released had reached retailers like supermarkets in the two weeks leading up to March 30. The price at which retailers purchased polished rice from wholesalers, when converted to a tax-included price, was about 3,070 yen (roughly $22) for 5 kilograms, nearly 30% cheaper than the announced price. The agriculture ministry explained that the main reasons for the delay in reserve rice stocks reaching stores are the release coinciding with the busy end-of-fiscal year period, causing a shortage of trucks, and the time required to polish large quantities of brown rice. Currently, a total of about 210,000 tons of stockpiled rice has been released through two auctions. A third auction for 100,000 tons is scheduled from April 23 to 25, and rice will continue to be released monthly until summer to suppress price surges. Tohoku University's Graduate School professor Katsuhito Fuyuki, a specialist in agricultural market studies, commented, "Some supermarkets, aware of the lower price of reserve rice, have begun reducing the price of their stock by about 100 yen (some 70 cents) per 5 kilograms. If stockpiled rice becomes widely available in stores, prices could potentially drop to the upper 3,000 yen (approx. $21) range."
