札幌さっぽろ スーパーで新米しんまいの販売はんばい開始かいし “去年きょねんより値上ねあがり”

Sales of newly harvested Hokkaido rice began on the 12th at major supermarkets in Sapporo.

The price is just over 4,800 yen including tax for 5 kilograms, which is about 1,000 yen higher than when sales began last year.

At major supermarkets in Sapporo, shipments of the new crop of Hokkaido-grown Yumepirika rice began arriving on the 12th. At one store in Minami Ward, Sapporo, 5-kilogram bags were lined up in the store around 9:30 a.m.

At this supermarket, the retail price is 4,838 yen including tax for 5 kilograms, which is an increase of 972 yen compared to when sales began last year, and 2,268 yen higher compared to two years ago, due to rising purchase costs.

At this supermarket, since the government stockpiled rice sold through discretionary contracts has sold out by the end of August, they are offering relatively inexpensive blended rice on the shelves, and for the time being, last years Yumepirika is also being sold at a 20% discount.

Supermarket manager Yuji Abe said, Compared to last year, the purchase price has gone up by about 1,000 yen.

We would like to lower the sales price as much as possible through corporate efforts, they said.

The woman in her 80s who bought the newly harvested rice said, “It’s a bit expensive, but I wanted to eat the new rice, so I bought it.”

Im living on a pension, so I wish it were a little cheaper, they said.

On the other hand, a woman in her 40s who decided not to buy the new rice said, Im going to pass on buying it today and wait for a cheaper day.

Compared to two years ago, the price has almost doubled, so its tough on the household budget, they said.

The harvest of new rice has begun: Quality is good, but the yield is expected to decrease. Rice harvesting has started in Yokote City, Akita Prefecture, one of the leading rice-producing areas in Japan.

Yasutaka Shibata cultivates rice in about 20 hectares of rice fields and began harvesting on the 12th.

The harvested rice was Akita Prefectures brand rice Sakihokore, and the golden ears of rice were being reaped one after another by the combine.

According to Mr. Shibata, this year’s high temperatures during the summer accelerated the growth, but since the temperature differences became greater in September, the rice has turned out to be of high quality.

On the other hand, since there was little rain in July and the rice did not grow sufficiently in some fields, many of the rice ears remain green and are empty inside. Because of this, Mr. Shibata expects that the harvest will decrease by about 10% compared to last year.

Mr. Shibata said, In rice fields that are greatly affected by the drought, about 70% of the rice plants are not growing properly.

We worked hard to grow them despite the bad weather conditions, so we hope everyone enjoys eating them.

According to Akita Prefecture, full-scale rice harvesting is expected to begin in various areas around the prefecture from next week and continue for about a month.

Some wholesalers are trying to keep prices down by purchasing rice directly. This year, a rice wholesale company headquartered in Saitama Prefecture has started signing contracts with rice farmers in Saitama, asking them to grow designated varieties such as Niji no Kirameki and Chihominori.

Rice produced by farmers is often collected by aggregators such as JA, then mainly goes through wholesalers who handle tasks like milling and packaging, and is finally purchased by consumers from retailers such as supermarkets.

In this case, wholesalers purchase rice directly from farmers without going through collection agents, which allows them to reduce distribution costs such as transportation and storage fees, thereby keeping retail prices lower.

It is also expected to help farmers secure stable sales channels.

According to the company, the rice purchased this year is scheduled to be sold at supermarkets in the same group starting in November, with a target store price of around 4,000 yen including tax for 5 kilograms.

Chairman Sadaaki Nakamura of the wholesale company said, We want to create an environment where producers can grow rice with peace of mind and establish a reliable supply line to supermarkets.

The government plans to expand about 60,000 hectares of rice paddies nationwide. At a cabinet meeting on the 12th, the government decided on a long-term land improvement plan for five years starting this fiscal year.

Land improvement is a project that promotes the development of fields, farm roads, and irrigation channels to increase agricultural productivity.

In the new plan, the initial goal is to reduce labor costs associated with rice production by more than 60% by fiscal year 11 of the Reiwa era.

It is planned to promote large-scale consolidation of approximately 60,000 hectares of rice paddies nationwide, grouping them into plots of at least one hectare each, in order to achieve this goal.

It also means that approximately 90,000 hectares of rice fields will be redeveloped to make it easier to implement smart agriculture using drones and other technologies.

The government wants to support increased rice production by improving the productivity of rice cultivation. At a press conference after todays Cabinet meeting, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Koizumi stated, As the number of farmers continues to decrease, it is extremely important to reduce production costs in order to ensure a stable supply of rice through production that meets demand.