Japan’s food self-sufficiency rate in the fiscal 2015 remained 39 percent on a calorie intake basis for the sixth consecutive year, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) announced on August 2.
An increase in domestic production of wheat and sugar beet was offset by a decrease in consumption of rice, one of the major crops with higher ratio of food self-sufficiency.
The Government newly set a goal in 2015 to raise the food self-sufficiency rate to 45 percent by the fiscal year 2025, but the rate has come to a standstill.
It will be the most urgent business for MAFF to revitalize production base of agricultural commodities as well as boost demands for locally-grown farm products amid growing concerns about possible negative impacts by the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade pact.
Meanwhile, the rate of the food self-sufficiency on a production value basis was raised to 66 percent by two points over the previous year, marking an increase for the first time in past six years.
The main contributors to this increase are vegetables and livestock products such as beef, which raised the rate on the production value basis respectively by 0.7 points.
However, the increased values of these products were brought about by price hikes due to reduced supplies. Those supplies were declined in the changeable weather conditions or on the weakened production base.