KYODO NEWS.

TOKYO- The Japanese government is considering roughly doubling the supply of stockpiled rice to make up for the shortfall as rice prices remain at near record highs, sources close to the matter said Thursday.

The government is studying releasing 100,000 tons of reserve rice per month for three months through July, in addition to 321,000 tons auctioned in three tranches between March and April.

Average rice prices continued rising to record highs before falling for the first time in 18 weeks in the week through May 4.

Farm ministry data showed that the total amount of rice secured by major distributors as of the end of January was down 230,000 tons from a year earlier, worse than the decline of 210,000 tons at the end of December.

Japan faces a shortage of rice partly because of a poor harvest in the summer of 2023 due to high temperatures and a sharp rise in rice consumption at restaurants with a surge in foreign tourists.

Given the law on use of stockpiled rice only mentions sharp production falls as a reason for releasing it, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries was initially cautious about doing so.

But the ministry decided on the release on the condition that the same amount of rice is bought back, in principle, within a year.

The government and some lawmakers of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are considering relaxing the buyback requirement, as the rule is seen as discouraging rice distributors from participating in auctions out of fear that they may not be able to sell rice back if they face a potential shortage.

The removal of the requirement should help more participants in auctions, LDP policy chief Itsunori Onodera told reporters on Wednesday after inspecting a warehouse in Saitama, near Tokyo, where reserved rice is stored.

Published Date: May 15, 2025