Sustainability is all too often debated from a carbon footprint, environmental or ethical angle – but Japan is dealing with the reality of rising food prices becoming a major challenge to its food security.
According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), economic pressures and rising costs are leading to significant uncertainty over the future of the agri-food sector in the country.
“The future of Japanese food is being called into question due to a variety of factors, including the international situation, the long-term depreciation of the yen, environmental concerns, a review of working styles, and issues surrounding successors [to current agri-food businesses,” MAFF said via a formal statement.
“It’s always better to make things as cheap as possible but things are not that simple – if just slashing prices was all there was to it, the people making and growing the food will not be able to make a living. This is why we need to think about fair and appropriate prices for food sellers, buyers and growers alike.”
MAFF has launched a nationwide initiative dubbed the Fair Price Project, which is focused on fostering consumer understanding about how prices of food products are set when taking reasonable input costs into account.
Tofu in particular has seen a great deal of consumer concern over rising prices, as it is considered a staple food in Japan and traditionally one of the most affordable sources of protein available.
According to the ministry, at present around 40% of tofu sellers are operating at a loss due to high input costs, especially those who make and sell the freshest tofu in their own stores and not via supermarkets.
How are prices formed?
But in addition to consumer understanding, MAFF is also pushing for more transparency in the way manufacturers and retailers form their product pricings, and will be launching a Food Trade Survey in October to gain a better understanding of how this is taking place on the ground.
“MAFF is promoting price formation that accounts for reasonable costs needed to ensure a sustainable supply of food, [where] it is important that transactions take the costs at each stage of distribution into account,” stated the ministry via a formal statement.
“[We] will now conduct a questionnaire survey on the current state of price negotiations and price transfers with business partners, as well as issues with business practices – the results of this survey will be used as basic information to improve the fairness of food transactions and to set reasonable prices.”
The survey will be conducted on about 20,000 companies across the country, randomly selected from a pool of preselected target businesses. All results will be made public, but responding individuals and businesses will also remain anonymous.
The ministry has established a taskforce of 18 ‘Food G-men’ who will be responsible for conducting the surveys from October 2025, monitoring and managing feedback, conducting inspections and more tasks related to the Food Trade Survey.
More help for food businesses to stay sustainable
In addition to setting fair prices, Japan is also setting up a separate certification system to assist food firms focused on improving business sustainability with extra support such as long-term low-interest loans, tax exemptions, facility support and more.
“The new system under MAFF will certify businesses that are implementing four types of business sustainability plans: 1) Working more closely with farmers, 2) streamlining distribution, 3) reducing environmental impact, and 4) improving consumer information,” said a spokesman for the ministry’s Food System Collaboration Promotion Office.
The 4 business sustainability initiatives eligible for certification
- Establishing stable business relationships with farmers → Concluding contracts for raw material procurement with new production areas, investing in agricultural, forestry and fishery businesses, etc.
- Streamlining distribution and increasing added value → Introducing equipment to improve labor productivity and establishing new business locations to develop new demand sources, etc.
- Reducing environmental impact and making effective use of resources → Reducing food waste in the food manufacturing process and utilizing food waste, etc.
- Helping consumers make purchasing choices by providing information → Communicating product sustainability information to consumers and visualizing food cost structures, etc.
Furthermore, in April 2026 a new requirement under the Food System Act will be enforced whereby pricing negotiations between business partners will be made mandatory, especially when business sustainability comes into play.
According to the Food System Act: “If trading partner A requests negotiations on transaction terms, indicating reasons for the request concern costs required to ensure a sustainable supply, trading partner B must endeavour to respond to the negotiations in good faith.”
Also, “If a proposal is made for initiatives that contribute to a sustainable food supply such as a review of business practices, the trading partner must endeavour to consider and cooperate.”
