【News】Noh no IKEBANA: Let’s have fun choosing containers                         (2) Deep containers for graceful loose arrangement (Sep. 2, 2016)

The end of the summer <”Noh no Ikebana” is an art of arranging agricultural pThe end of the summerroducts together with agricultural implements and other familiar instruments. It’s a type of Ikebana but mainly for farmers. The series “Noh no Ikebana” will show you how to best feature the materials and containers you choose, with the help of fans of this style of Ikebana nationwide.> Arrangements with deep, large containers with a wide opening such as ittomasu (a large wooden bucket to measure rice), seoikago (a bamboo pannier) and a hibachi (a porcelain brazier) have strong impact, and they’ll be good event floral decors. Just having one arrangement is already … Continue reading

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【News】 Spending habits by Chinese tourists shift from shopping to dining in Japan, Gurunavi says (Sep. 30, 2016)

Gurunavi, Inc., operating an online restaurant search site called Japan Restaurant Guide at Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, has conducted a survey on spending habits of international tourists visiting Japan. The survey was responded by 422 Gurunavi member restaurants across the country. According to results of the survey, more than 80 percent of those restaurants received guests from overseas during past twelve months. Most of the restaurants, particularly Yakinikuya Japanese BBQ restaurants, have a strong tendency to increase foreign guests. Spending habits of Chinese tourists have been shifting from shopping of goods made in Japan to dining of Japanese cuisine. It is expected that Chinese tourists will increasingly visit Japanese restaurants in October … Continue reading

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【Photo series】Vegetable-only sushi attracting attention at home and abroad (Sep. 11,2016)

Vegesushi, pressed sushi that uses only vegetables, is recently drawing attention due to its colorful design and consideration for vegetarians. The new sushi was released in April by Hoxai Kitchen, a group of designers working abroad, bringing a new wave of sushi in and outside Japan. Vegesushi is created by pressing sushi rice and vegetables in a rectangular wooden mold. The group uses Akitakomachi brand of rice when making vegesushi in Japan, and Italy-made Koshihikari rice when making the product in Europe. They always use locally produced vegetables as fillings and toppings. The group, which conducts activities mainly in Europe, came up with the idea of vegetable-only sushi so that … Continue reading

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【News】 US popular hamburger restaurants join Japanese market to increase demand for high-quality hamburgers by 20 % in 2015, FUJI KEIZAI reports (Sep. 29, 2016)

FUJI KEIZAI, CO., LTD, a marketing research and consulting group based at Chuo-ku, Tokyo, recently released a report that highlighted a 23.4% increase in sales of high-quality hamburgers in 2015 over the previous year. The Japanese market of premium burgers, most of which are being sold for around 1000 to 1500 yen, grew to as much as 5.8 billion yen last year. US popular hamburger restaurants joined the Japanese market one after another in 2015, where Japanese competitors of chain shops have turned to increasingly introduce a premium line of burgers. According to the FUJI KEIZAI, the Japanese market of hamburger is continuing to grow because of its topicality and … Continue reading

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【News】 MAFF to further increase butter imports by 4000 tons due to possible decline in milk supplies by Typhoons (Sep. 28, 2016)

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) announced a plan to increase butter imports by 4,000 tons on September 27. MAFF’s plan has been worked out on its precise assumption that the domestic market of milk will be further tightened because a hot-summer climate and damages by typhoons possibly bring about falls in milk supplies during coming months. The total import of butter is expected to hit a record of 17 thousand tons in fiscal 2016. MAFF has also taken into consideration a demand-supply estimate made by the Japan Dairy Association (J-Milk) as well as views of farmer’s organizations and users. Additional butter of 4,000 tons is to be … Continue reading

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