Japan rice crisis: Agriculture minister's 'never bought rice' remark causes huge uproar, forces him to resign

Japan's agriculture minister, Taku Eto was forced to resign on Wednesday (May 21) after he said that he “never had to buy rice” because he got it from supporters as gifts. This comes amid the country facing rice shortages triggered by poor harvests and rising production costs.

The comment by the minister seen by many as out of touch with economic realities was made at a seminar Sunday for the Liberal Democratic Party, which is in minority and is going to fight national election in July.

“I made an extremely inappropriate remark at a time when consumers are struggling with soaring rice prices,” Eto told reporters after tendering his resignation at the prime minister’s office, reported news agency AP.

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To keep the rising price in check, the government has released tons of rice from its emergency stockpile in recent months, but there seems to be little impact of this move.

The prices of rice at supermarkets stand at a record 4,268 yen for 5 kg in the week ending May 11 from 4,214 yen the week before. This is almost double the price of 2024, according to reports.

The shortfall started in August last year after the government told people to prepare for a major earthquake. This led to panic buying of rice, the staple food of japan. However, the supply pressure eased after the autumn harvest, but prices rose again, reported AP.

Hot weather in 2023 and higher fertilizer and other production costs are being pointed out by government officials as reasons for the rice crisis in the country.

The government has released tonnes of stocked rice in the market but this hasn't made any impact on the prices so far, according to reports.