Many of Japan's rice farmers are changing how they do business in a bid to satisfy domestic demand amid historically high prices. That's leading producers to turn their focus away from exports and animal feed to find ways to sell more of their harvest at home.
Rice farmers increase production
Taniguchi Daichi, a rice farmer in the southwestern prefecture of Fukuoka, made a major decision amid growing demand.
Taniguchi's rice fields in Fukuoka Prefecture.
Last year, of the 23 hectares of farmland he manages, Taniguchi grew rice for human consumption in two-thirds of the rice paddies, with rice and beans for livestock feed in the remainder.
But, this year's rising demand from consumers and restaurants has led him to focus entirely on rice for the table.
Taniguchi says his monthly orders were so high he sold out last year's crop by January.
And despite this year's harvest being months away, his entire crop has already been sold.
Taniguchi says he can't produce enough rice to meet the demand this year.
Meanwhile, a government survey has found that farms are planning to expand their acreage devoted to the crop, which should alleviate supply concerns.
The agriculture ministry says its January survey revealed that 19 of Japan's 47 prefectures plan to increase their rice paddies this year.
Nationwide, the land used to grow table rice is forecast to grow 1.8 percent from last year to 1.28 million hectares.
Exports set to decrease
In addition, it's increasingly likely that rice exports will be reduced.
Nakayama Kazuya grows rice on about 50 hectares in Ibaraki Prefecture near Tokyo.
Nakayama Kazuya at work in Ibaraki.
He decided to increase overall production this year, but reduced the area dedicated to growing rice for export from 12 hectares last year to just one.
Last year, Nakayama's domestic production sold for roughly double the price of his exported rice. That stark difference pushed him to reduce export production, a decision other farmers are also taking.
It's a shift that's backed up by the figures. According to an organization of Ibaraki Prefecture exporters and producers, this year's harvest for export is expected to be down 20 percent from last year at more than 1,400 tons.
Exporters addressing the situation
As the production of rice for export is expected to decline, exporters are facing up to the situation.
Rice destined for export.
According to Hasegawa Aritomo, who runs a rice trading business, his company has been expanding its sales channels by working on exports to the US and Southeast Asia for the last nine years.
But this year, the company says it has no choice but to reduce the number of clients it will ship to.
Hasegawa Aritomo
Hasegawa says as overseas demand is strong and is expected to increase in future, he made efforts to grow his sales channels. He describes it as regrettable that he has no choice now but to reduce overseas shipments.
The company has had to pay over 60 percent more for the rice it intends to export because of soaring prices in Japan. It is continuing negotiations with overseas clients to pass on the increased cost.
But the firm is concerned that could affect the overseas sales channels it has built. Hasegawa says there is no doubt that the number of customers will decrease.
He says that if he wants to regain lost trading partners in future, they will likely have already secured what they need from other sources.
Latest data underlines need for action
The rice price remains historically high despite the government release of national stockpiles to stabilize distribution.
The agriculture ministry released data on Monday for the week through May 11th based on a survey of about 1,000 supermarkets nationwide.
It says the price rose from the previous week, and has been more than double that of the year before for a considerable time now.
An expert suggests the government should think about ways to encourage farmers to produce more rice to stabilize prices.
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