Kazuhiro Takamatsu
Although the amount of imported onions from China is rapidly increasing due to the shortage of domestically-grown onions, pesticide residues exceeding the reference value are frequently detected in Chinese onions. To deal with this situation, the government obliged importers to examine all lots from this month. As China also strengthened regulations trying to investigate the causes, onion imports from China is getting more likely to decrease drastically. While trading companies are trying to provide onions from other countries like America, it is also assumed that demand for domestically-grown onions will be greater, and the price as well as their supply and demand will be affected.
Japan imports 250,000 tons of onions from China every year. Imported onions, most of which are already peeled in China, are widely used in the food service industry and food processing industry. The amount has increased more than that of last year for 10 consecutive months since last September.
However, in the middle and end of July, neonicotinoid pesticide “thiamethoxam” was found to exceed the reference value in two cases consecutively through the sample inspections by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. The ministry issued an “inspection order” to oblige all importers to examine all lots. By strengthening the inspection systems of importers, ten more cases of exceeding the normal range were revealed.
In one of the production areas in the Shandong Province, from which most of the onion imports come in this season, many farmers use pesticides including thiamethoxam to cultivate green onions or carrots. A person concerned said, “The farmers might have used thiamethoxam without knowing the Japanese standard, or the pesticide sprayed for other crops might have been scattered.”
To deal with these situations, China strengthened the domestic regulations of the General Administration of Quality, Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine in each area. One of the importers said, “There’ll be no prospect for a while for stable amount of import like before.” The import price at the port of peeled onions increased from last month’s around JPY45 per 1 kilogram to more than JPY70. According to some trading firms, the amount of imported onions in August will decrease by half.
Those concerned are worried about where they can get other onions. Imported onions from Washington, the United States will increase in the end of September. Some trading firms are trying to import onions from New Zealand or Korea as an emergency measure for the time being. However, it is possible that a shortage of onions will cause a lot of trouble in the food processing industry because few countries can export “peeled” onions, and some people say there are no substitutes for Chinese onions.
Many people are trying to obtain onions from Hokkaido, Japan’s largest producer, which has started shipping from this month. It is estimated that there will be a critical shortage in the supply of domestically-grown onions and the price will increase. The yield of Hokkaido onions is expected to be higher than that of last year. Hokuren Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives, which is engaged in sales and marketing of farm products in Hokkaido, said “it is good news that more attention is paid to domestically-grown crops. We’ll try to offer crops both for fresh markets and for processing.”
(Aug. 27, 2014)