Japan’s August rice price soars 23% on summer heat, quake warning

Rice prices sold at supermarkets in Japan in August jumped 23 percent from a year earlier due to tight supply from last summer’s extreme heat and a buying rush following a government advisory about a potential megaquake, a consumer data research firm reported Friday.

The average price of rice per 5 kilograms last month was 2,266 yen, up from 1,839 yen in August last year, also reflecting demand boosted by booming inbound tourism, according to data from True Data Inc.

As newly harvested rice enters the market, supply is expected to increase, though there are concerns that prices may remain higher than last year due to rising production costs.

The average price in September last year, when rice from the 2023 harvest began hitting store shelves, was 1,878 yen. However, prices have surged since this spring amid growing concerns about a rice shortage, topping 2,000 yen in June.

Still, the increased cost of living kept demand for rice solid as consumers saw rice as relatively cheaper than other staple foods such as bread.

Some consumers began stockpiling rice after the weather agency in August issued its first-ever advisory for the increased risk of a megaquake along the Nakai Trough that stretches from central to southwestern Japan in the Pacific.

A surge in the number of foreign tourists to Japan also prompted some restaurants to purchase more rice. The total spending by foreign visitors to Japan this year is expected to rise 1.8-fold to approximately 9.69 trillion yen, according to an estimate by Katsuhiro Miyamoto, a professor emeritus at Kansai University.

This article has been republished from The Japan Today.