As prices continue to soar, the Japanese government announced this week that it will release stored rice around the end of July. It has released two batches of rice from its stock, with a total weight of 210,000 tons. The auction took place in March and sales began at the end of that month. So far, the release has been Very little impact and consider Stable price.
Average rice in Japan rises for the 13th consecutive week
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the average price of 1,000 supermarkets of 5 kilograms of rice is 4,206 yen, including taxes, when the first wave of stored rice was on board the shelves. This increased by 10 yen compared to last week. This is the 13th consecutive week of average price increases and more than double the cost a year ago.
attempt Offsetting this trend, the government will continue its plan to release rice storage. The third auction will be held in the fourth week of April 100,000 tons of rice. “The purpose of the measure is to stabilize rice prices by ensuring stable supply,” said Taku Eto, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, in a press conference on Wednesday. “We will take steps to ensure that rice reaches consumers as soon as possible.”
ETO announced the news after receiving instructions from Prime Minister Shigeru Isbon Earlier in the day. He added: “We will consider taking further measures without hesitation when necessary.”
Japanese rice fields
Japanese rice reserve
The government created a rice reserve in 1995, two years after a surprisingly cool summer crippled rice harvest. The stocks were derived from the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in 2011 and the Kumamoto earthquake five years later. Due to a combination of factors, the government has decided this year to continue to rise as prices continue, including poor harvests in 2023 due to high temperatures. Last year’s panic purchase was aggravated by consulting warnings that could be caused by potential mega-scale along the South Carolina trough.