Latest news with #wholesalers
Japan Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Government blames rice price surges on procurement route changes
Rice price surges in Japan since last summer were caused by wholesalers procuring rice through different routes than in previous years, a government white paper on agriculture said Friday. The paper, presented at the day's Cabinet meeting, described the situation since last summer's rice shortage. After the government issued in August last year information warning of a possible major earthquake in the Nankai Trough off Japan's Pacific coast, people's purchases of rice at supermarkets increased about 1.5 times from a year before. This coincided with the time of year when distributors' rice stocks often decrease ahead of the release of newly harvested rice, causing rice scarcity at retailers and others. The amount of rice cropped in 2024 increased by 180,000 metric tons from the previous year, but the volume handled by major buyers was significantly lower, due in part to some rice producers boosting direct sales to consumers and sales to nonconventional buyers. The white paper concluded that rice prices at retailers soared because wholesalers had to buy rice at relatively high prices via different procurement routes to supplement shortfalls. It explained that the government has worked to ease the stagnation of the rice supply, including by holding multiple auctions for government-stockpiled rice since March this year. The government later switched the method of releasing its stockpiled rice from competitive bidding to no-bid contracts.
Japan Times
17-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Wholesalers may be behind elevated retail rice prices
Larger gaps between wholesalers' procurement and selling prices, which represent their costs and profits, may be a factor behind the high retail price of rice in Japan, a government survey has suggested. According to the survey by the agriculture ministry between March 17 and April 13, buyers of government-stockpiled rice sold it to wholesalers at prices that were ¥961 per 60 kilograms higher on average than their purchase prices. Such gaps were up to ¥2,400 in a previous survey for ordinary rice harvested in 2022. Meanwhile, wholesalers added ¥7,593 on average to their selling prices for stockpiled rice, far more than the ¥2,206 to ¥4,689 added for the 2022 rice. "We want (wholesalers) to understand that (sales of stockpiled rice) are different from deals on ordinary rice and to make utmost efforts (to lower retail rice prices)," agriculture minister Taku Eto said in a news conference on Friday. On the same day, the ministry set up a 60,000-ton quota in auctions for stockpiled rice for bidders planning to deliver the rice to retailers within one month. Under the quota, 20,000 tons will be available to bidders who plan to sell the rice directly to retailers. "Bypassing wholesalers will speed up (the distribution of stockpiled rice) considerably," Eto said. "(Retail) prices are expected to fall as there will be no (wholesaler) distribution costs and profits."
NHK
16-05-2025
- Business
- NHK
Japan to hold fourth auction of stockpiled rice this month
Japan's agriculture ministry said on Friday it will hold its fourth auction of rice from government stockpiles later this month. It will release 100,000 tons for sale from May 28 to 30. Starting with the up-coming auction, revised bidding rules will be applied, giving priority to wholesalers who have already committed to distribute rice to retailers. The deadline for the government to buy back rice from wholesalers will be extended from a year to up to five years. The change also applies to stockpiled rice that wholesalers have already purchased. But there will be no buyback for this year's harvest. The government is hoping the revisions will ensure that more rice is available for consumers amid shortages and soaring prices. Some smaller supermarkets and rice stores in rural areas say they have no idea when they can get rice released from stockpiles. The revised bidding conditions are aimed at encouraging more wholesalers to take part in auctions and widening distribution channels. Previously the government bought back from wholesalers within a year the same amount of rice it had sold to them. But for some wholesalers, the short deadline was a disincentive because they could not be certain of obtaining enough rice to sell back. Competition is already keen among wholesalers aiming to buy the rice that will be harvested this year.
NHK
15-05-2025
- Business
- NHK
Japan eyes easing bidding conditions for stockpiled rice
NHK has learned that the Japanese government plans to relax the bidding conditions for the purchase of its stockpiled rice in a bid to avoid shortages of the staple food. Agriculture ministry officials have been considering revising the rules because rice prices remain high even after the government started releasing stockpiles in March. The average retail price is almost double what it was a year ago. Currently, the government in principle buys back the same amount of rice it sold to wholesalers within a year. Wholesalers can only take part in stockpiled rice auctions if they agree to the buyback rule. The agriculture ministry plans to extend the buyback deadline by several years, while excluding rice harvested this autumn. It aims to ensure more rice is available for consumers by extending the deadline, and hopes to ease concerns about future rice shortages. Meanwhile, the government is expected to release about 100,000 tons of stockpiled rice monthly through July. It is considering giving priority at auctions to wholesalers that plan to distribute rice to retailers.
Japan Times
10-05-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
As prices soar, Zen-Noh ships just 32% of government-stockpiled rice
Japan's National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations, or Zen-Noh, has shipped just 32% of the stockpiled rice that it bought from the government in March. Zen-Noh said Friday that as of a day earlier, it had completed shipments of 63,266 tons of the 199,270 tons of government-stockpiled rice that it bought through auctions in March. The release of stockpiled rice was part of the government's efforts to lower surging rice prices. The federation is currently shipping between 2,000 and 3,000 tons of rice per day. It is working to send out deliveries as quickly as possible, a Zen-Noh official said. Zen-Noh had been asked by wholesalers as of Thursday to ship 140,363 tons, or 70% of the rice it bought in the auctions. It was asked to ship 55,112 tons in March and April, 70,596 tons in May, 13,854 tons in June and 802 tons in July. The federation earlier this month said that it would promote early shipments after the agriculture ministry called on it to expand supply.
