TOKYO, May 13 — A subsidiary of the National Federation of Agriculture Cooperative Associations known as JA ZEN-NOH, the marketing arm of JA (Japan Agricultural Cooperatives) group, will strengthen sales of packed cooked rice it produces.
JA ZEN-NOH Radfa, which boosted its production capacity by opening a new factory last year, launched an e-commerce website on May 12 and began offering packed rice online.
Through making packaged rice more widely available, it hopes to stabilize supply of rice as insufficient distribution of the staple grain continues.
The firm, based in the town of Shikama in Miyagi Prefecture, sold 7 million packs of retort cooked rice in fiscal 2024, up as much as 45 percent from the previous year.
Demand for packaged rice increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, when people stayed home and looked for quick and tasty meal solutions.
And since last year, it has become popular as an affordable product amid the ongoing rice supply shortage and price hikes. Some mass retailers are replacing polished rice products with packaged cooked rice, leading to higher demand in the market.
JA ZEN-NOH Radfa decided to boost sales by offering its products online, as its new factory allowed the firm to increase production by four times to 16 million packs a year.
The firm’s website offers six types of packaged rice, each sold in 12-pack sets.
Nokyo Gohan, the main product that comes in 180-gram packs, is sold at 3,500 yen a set, while a 200g pack containing the Hitomebore variety grown in Miyagi Prefecture is sold at 2,500 yen per set.
People can make subscription orders or send them as gifts. The prices vary depending on the types of products and orders.
Six types of packaged cooked rice available on JA ZEN-NOH Radfa’s website. PHOTO COURTESY OF JA ZEN-NOH RADFA