TOKYO, Sept. 5 ― Japan’s governmental export agency says it will start disseminating information from next year on the most in-demand agriculture products in Asian markets.
The objective is to help Japanese food producers and processors to develop export markets, according to the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), a trade ministry subsidiary that connects Japanese producers with overseas markets.
“Farmers have got to produce what the market wants, not the other way around,” said JETRO Chairman Hiroyuki Ishige at a press conference on Sept. 4.
Every year, JETRO supports Japanese producers take part in more than 50 food exhibitions and promotional events around the globe.
Tapping into its own network of buyers and restaurateurs, JETRO will start regularly providing the latest market information via its website on what will be the most demanded agriculture products in Asian countries.
The move is a part of the Japanese government’s strategy to boost agriculture exports to offset an obvious loss in the domestic market, as Tokyo appears ready to expose the agriculture sector to more import competition through free trade agreements.
The government has sets a target to boost the annual value of agricultural exports to 1 trillion yen by 2020.