Chinese shiitake spawn import to Japan to hit a record in 2018

TOKYO, Jan. 13 ― Japan’s imports of shiitake spawn, which are essentially mushroom seeds, will likely hit a record volume in 2018, exceeding the 2017 record, official data have shown. Shiitake are among the most popular of many varieties of mushrooms eaten by the fungi-mad Japanese. Each year, families and restaurants stew, fry and grill hundreds of tons of these brown umbrella-shaped vegetables. Shiitake spawn imports to Japan in the first eleven months through November 2018 totaled 18,650 metric tons, already exceeding the 2017 full-year import record of 15,649 metric tons, according to the finance ministry. If the December figure remains the same level a year earlier, then the imports … Continue reading

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Japan’s first shipment of Niigata-grown rice for China sets sail

YOKOHAMA, Jan. 9 ― The first shipment of rice to China sourced exclusively from Niigata prefecture, one of Japan’s most renowned rice producers, is set to depart from the Port of Yokohama. JA ZEN-NOH, the National Federation of Agriculture Cooperative Associations, the marketing arm of JA group, assembled in Yokohama on Jan. 8 to celebrate the consignment. “Niigata shipments account for a third of the entire Japanese rice exports,” said Agriculture Minister Takamori Yoshikawa at the ceremony. “I hope rice shipments from Niigata to China will increase.” This shipment is significant because China decided last November to lift its seven-year import ban on rice from Niigata prefecture, which was imposed in … Continue reading

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Japan’s outbreak of hog cholera continues with 7th case found

TOKYO, Jan. 30 ― Japan’s outbreak of classical swine fever, also known as hog cholera, has continued to spread with a seventh case identified on Jan. 29, since the country first reported the disease in September last year. The seventh case was discovered in Kakamigahara, Gifu prefecture, central Japan, the agriculture ministry said on Jan. 29. The announcement was made only three days after Gifu prefecture lifted restrictions of movement and shipment on hog farms on Jan. 26. “It is so regrettable,” Agriculture Minister Takamori Yoshikawa said at a Jan. 29 press conference. “I have instructed officials to work out new measures for tighter control of the disease.” Gifu prefectural … Continue reading

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Japanese gentian grower hopes business will bloom in winter

HACHIMANTAI, Jan. 10 ― Gentian, a brilliant blue flower, grows best in sunny conditions. But Ayumi Miyano, a 36-year-old gentian grower, has tried her luck and experimented with the herb, finding a way to keep her business going even in the freezing temperature in winter. Miyano and her 10 part-time female workers make products, such as candle and herbarium, out of the herb in Hachimantai, Iwate prefecture, known for its gentian-growing region in Japan. They cut the plant when the flowers are just beginning to open and then hang them up for some time. “I’m hoping this can be a place for us to survive in winter,” Miyano smiles.

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Surprise your partner with wagyu steaks for Valentine’s Day

TOKYO, Jan. 28 ― Surprise your partner with a heart-shaped wagyu steak gift for Valentine’s Day. That was the idea the high-end Japanese department store, Takashimaya, in Tokyo came up with to make Valentine’s Day a special event for customers. The department’s meat sales section is offering online delivery services of these special steaks through Valentine’s Day. It cuts wagyu beef in a heart shape and sells a pair of 120-gram set for loin slice at 6,912 yen and round slice at 4,752 yen.

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