Photo/Illutration Government reserves of rice are sold at a supermarket in Sapporo. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

The price of rice in stores edged up 1.1 percent from the previous week, causing further pain for a nation dependent on the staple.

The average retail price nationwide posted its first rise in 10 weeks as sales of low-cost rice from government reserves slowed, a farm ministry survey showed on Aug. 4.

The tax-inclusive sales price of a standard five-kilogram bag of rice averaged 3,625 yen ($25) for July 21-27, up 40 yen from the previous seven-day period.

The figure is calculated from a research company survey of stickers at about 1,000 supermarkets.

Sluggish growth in sales of rice from the government stockpile has failed to drive down overall prices. They are up about 50 percent from last year.

The average price of branded rice, which comes from a single variety and harvest area, was 4,247 yen, down 17 yen, or 0.4 percent, from the previous week. This was the first decline in two weeks.

However, the average price of a cheaper category including rice from the government stockpile, described in the survey as “blended rice and other products,” was 3,133 yen, up 45 yen, or 1.5 percent.

Overall prices are down from their peak. The average price hit 4,285 yen during the week of May 12–18, which was more than double the price last year.

The government then began selling stockpiled rice directly to supermarkets and other retailers through negotiated contracts rather than auctions.

Rice from government reserves began appearing on store shelves at the end of May, priced at about 2,000 yen for five kilograms.

As more lower-priced rice entered circulation, the overall average price plummeted.

However, the decline began to level off in July as the pace of distribution of stockpiled rice stabilized.

The proportion of “blended rice and other products” in total sales volume plateaued in the upper 50-percent range, blunting the downward pressure on overall prices.

The price of branded rice also fell during the period, but only gradually. It has remained above 4,200 yen per five kilograms for the past five weeks, widening the gap with the cheaper category.

The matter has the government’s attention. To stabilize prices, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba plans to increase the national rice harvest, in a switch from the government’s decades-old policy of curbing rice output to support prices.

Ishiba is expected to reiterate the policy shift at a meeting of ministers involved in the rice policy on Aug. 5, government sources said.

The ministers will consider ways to improve productivity, including increasing large-scale farms and adopting new technology. Another possible measure is to expand exports.

The curbs date back half a century. Anticipating a decline in demand in the 1970s, the government began implementing a full-scale “gentan” acreage reduction policy to prevent a surplus and a collapse in prices.

The policy was abolished in 2018 after criticism of its negative impact on farmers’ motivation.

However, the government continued to support measures that kept a cap on rice heading to market, including offering subsidies for diverting rice from human use to animal feed.

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