Japan's rice inventory in the private sector dropped to 1.56 million tons in June, the lowest since comparable data began in 1999 and a decrease of about 20 percent from a year ago, the farm ministry said Tuesday, with surging inbound tourism driving up demand and last year's summer heat affecting the crop.
With high temperatures continuing this summer, there are concerns that the inventory may further decline and lead to price hikes.
While the annual demand for rice had been declining in Japan due to its shrinking population, preliminary data showed that domestic demand for the year through June stood at 7.02 million tons, up 110,000 tons from the previous year, marking the first increase in 10 years.
Among the factors that lifted demand, the ministry said people may have found the rise in rice prices relatively reasonable compared to those for bread or noodles.
Japan has seen an influx of tourists with the removal of COVID-19 travel restrictions and a weak yen, and eating Japanese food was a top priority for them, according to a 2023 report on foreign visitors to Japan by the Japan Tourism Agency.
For the rice produced in 2023, the average price when producer cooperatives sold it to wholesalers climbed to 15,865 yen per 60 kilograms in June, the highest in about 11 years.
The ministry insisted, however, that the supply-demand balance is "not in a crunch," saying that the distribution of rice produced in 2024 has not yet fully ramped up.
The government projects that rice inventory will dip to 1.52 million tons by June next year, and domestic demand will decrease to 6.73 million tons through the same month.
