Larger gaps between wholesalers’ procurement and selling prices, which represent their costs and profits, may be a factor behind the high retail price of rice in Japan, a government survey has suggested.
According to the survey by the agriculture ministry between March 17 and April 13, buyers of government-stockpiled rice sold it to wholesalers at prices that were ¥961 per 60 kilograms higher on average than their purchase prices. Such gaps were up to ¥2,400 in a previous survey for ordinary rice harvested in 2022.
Meanwhile, wholesalers added ¥7,593 on average to their selling prices for stockpiled rice, far more than the ¥2,206 to ¥4,689 added for the 2022 rice.
“We want (wholesalers) to understand that (sales of stockpiled rice) are different from deals on ordinary rice and to make utmost efforts (to lower retail rice prices),” agriculture minister Taku Eto said in a news conference on Friday.
On the same day, the ministry set up a 60,000-ton quota in auctions for stockpiled rice for bidders planning to deliver the rice to retailers within one month. Under the quota, 20,000 tons will be available to bidders who plan to sell the rice directly to retailers.
“Bypassing wholesalers will speed up (the distribution of stockpiled rice) considerably,” Eto said. “(Retail) prices are expected to fall as there will be no (wholesaler) distribution costs and profits.”
