The price went up 5X in a year and there is no shortage. You can always find rice in the store.
I can’t find the link, but there was a big online discussion about this phenomenon. There is a shortage at the wholesale level. And it’s reshaping how these basic commodities are distributed. You don’t see it because you’re high enough on the income pyramid that “shortage” is revealed as “higher price to discourage consumption” rather than “oops, none left”.
But I’m willing to bet you’re going to see certain manufacturers that consume large volumes of lower grade rice (rice candy, rice alcohol, etc) taking a huge hit as their nearly-free commodity dries up.
Either way, there’s stock on the shelves in no small part because bulk buyers are being priced out.
The other problem is that regardless of whether the shortage is real or propaganda, the Japanese government makes it very difficult to buy foreign rice. Imported rice could provide relief but you can’t find it. I have access to shop on US bases because I’m a veteran. There is high quality US grown short grain rice, which is what the Japanese prefer, for about 500 yen a kilogram. And long grain California rice and Thai rice that is much cheaper, but not as tasty as short grain rice. Japan could make more imported rice available but then the farmers in Japan wouldn’t be able to fail to meet the country’s food demand and get rewarded with more money. New weather patterns from climate change require farmers to grow more heat resistant strains of rice. The farmers, in typical Japanese fashion, would rather have a root canal with no anesthetic than change even the smallest thing.
I can’t find the link, but there was a big online discussion about this phenomenon. There is a shortage at the wholesale level. And it’s reshaping how these basic commodities are distributed. You don’t see it because you’re high enough on the income pyramid that “shortage” is revealed as “higher price to discourage consumption” rather than “oops, none left”.
But I’m willing to bet you’re going to see certain manufacturers that consume large volumes of lower grade rice (rice candy, rice alcohol, etc) taking a huge hit as their nearly-free commodity dries up.
Either way, there’s stock on the shelves in no small part because bulk buyers are being priced out.
The other problem is that regardless of whether the shortage is real or propaganda, the Japanese government makes it very difficult to buy foreign rice. Imported rice could provide relief but you can’t find it. I have access to shop on US bases because I’m a veteran. There is high quality US grown short grain rice, which is what the Japanese prefer, for about 500 yen a kilogram. And long grain California rice and Thai rice that is much cheaper, but not as tasty as short grain rice. Japan could make more imported rice available but then the farmers in Japan wouldn’t be able to fail to meet the country’s food demand and get rewarded with more money. New weather patterns from climate change require farmers to grow more heat resistant strains of rice. The farmers, in typical Japanese fashion, would rather have a root canal with no anesthetic than change even the smallest thing.