A Big Deal in Japan: South Korean Rice for Sale

Japan's longstanding rejection of foreign-grown rice is eroding in the face of skyrocketing prices. Case in point: The Guardian reports the country has imported rice from South Korea for the first time since 1999. While the 2 tons of Korean rice shipped and sold this month represent just a "sliver" of Japan's consumption, reports Bloomberg, ten times that amount should arrive in the coming days. Even with the tariffs Japan imposes, it's cheaper than the homegrown variety. Japanese rice prices have roughly doubled since last year, with an 11-pound bag selling to consumers for an average $30 for the week ending April 13, marking the 15th straight week of price increases, per NHK.

At issue is a domestic shortage caused by everything from drought and panic-buying to an onslaught of rice-eating tourists and distribution issues. That last factor has befouled the government's efforts to ease the pain itself. The Guardian reports the Japan began releasing 230,000 tons of stockpiled rice from its rice reserves in March to stop further price rises. Only 470 tons, or 0.3% of the total, had reached stores by the end of the month. The agriculture ministry said a shortage of delivery vehicles and the time needed to prepare the grain for sale were to blame. The government has historically only touched its rice reserves after crop failures or natural disasters; this is the first time reserves have been used to address distribution problems, per the Guardian.

In 1993, Thai rice imported after a poor harvest went mostly unsold. That skepticism of foreign rice seems less apparent amid the current shortage. One Tokyo restaurant owner told Reuters he shifted to American rice last year after Japanese rice prices rose, and that while the price of Californian rice is twice what it was last summer, it is still cheaper than domestic options. He reported no complaints from customers. "Unless domestic prices fall below [California] Calrose prices, I don't plan to switch back," he said. (This content was created with the help of AI. Read our AI policy.)