Rice Prices in Japan Hit 31-Year High

The price of rice hit a 31-year high. This year’s crop will sell at a price 48% higher than the 2023 crop. The surge will be determined primarily by a particularly hot and dry summer, which reduced yields.

The average price of rice sold by the National Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Associations and other supplier organizations to wholesalers is 22,700 yen per 60 kilograms in September, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said, cited by Japan Today. The price is the highest since 1993, when it reached ¥23,607, according to the National Rice Exchange and Pricing Center.

Also contributing to the price hike will be rising production costs caused by inflation and a surge in consumption caused by the country’s tourism boom. The fact that some of the population stocked up on rice following a warning issued in August 2024 by the national meteorological agency of an increased tsunami risk associated with the instability of Nakai, a depression off the east coast of Japan affected by a particularly dangerous fault characterized by subduction of the Philippine Plate beneath Japan.