Japan to Release 200,000 Tons of Emergency Rice to Curb Prices

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Japan will release 200,000 metric tons of rice from its emergency stockpiles to address the doubling of prices since last year. This was revealed by Japan's Agricultural Minister, Shinjiro Koizumi, on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, as reported by CNA.

From this latest release, 100,000 tons of rice harvested in 2021 will be sold first to retailers of all sizes and local rice sellers with adequate milling capacity, he said. The rest will follow from the 2020 crop year.

The soaring rice prices have been a major concern for consumers and policymakers ahead of crucial general elections in Tokyo and nationwide. Consumers have formed long queues to buy a 5-kilogram bag of rice sold at a price of 2,000 yen, or Rp225,697 in the past one and a half weeks.

"We want to continue responding without slowing down so that the stockpiled rice can reach consumers quickly and at a low cost," Koizumi said in a press conference.

"We must never allow the virtuous cycle of prices and wages in the Japanese economy as a whole to break down. If the cause lies with rice, then I believe we must address such issues promptly."

So far, Japan has released about 600,000 tons of rice from its roughly 900,000-ton emergency stockpiles since March. About half of it has been sold directly to retailers in just the past two weeks based on Koizumi's new distribution policy.

Data on Monday, June 9, showed that average supermarket rice prices dropped for the second consecutive week. It fell by 37 yen to 4,223 yen, or Rp476,558 per 5 kilograms in seven days until June 1.

Koizumi has hinted at his readiness to release the entire emergency stockpile and utilize imports if necessary to stabilize rice prices until the new harvest arrives in August.

Price trends and next policy steps will be closely monitored as Japan heads towards the upcoming general elections in a few weeks.

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