And buckwheat is one of those materials. In Japan, it is used for making “soba” noodles.
Import prices of the grain have been soaring on the back of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the weaker yen.
Now, Japan's biggest buckwheat-milling firm is planning to grow more of the crop at home to offset the rising costs.
Nikkoku Seifun has been importing about 80 percent of the buckwheat it processes.
The source countries include Russia and China, where prices used to be relatively low, but are now steeply rising.
China's buckwheat production is decreasing as it switches to soybeans and other crops in a bid to lessen its dependence on U.S. farm products.
The company is feeling the effects directly. It has been forced to raise the price of its flour made from imported buckwheat twice since last year.
The firm plans to double its buckwheat acreage in Japan by 2024. It's also building a new flour factory to expand capacity.再生解説
Import prices of the grain have been soaring on the back of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the weaker yen.
Now, Japan's biggest buckwheat-milling firm is planning to grow more of the crop at home to offset the rising costs.
Nikkoku Seifun has been importing about 80 percent of the buckwheat it processes.
The source countries include Russia and China, where prices used to be relatively low, but are now steeply rising.
China's buckwheat production is decreasing as it switches to soybeans and other crops in a bid to lessen its dependence on U.S. farm products.
The company is feeling the effects directly. It has been forced to raise the price of its flour made from imported buckwheat twice since last year.
The firm plans to double its buckwheat acreage in Japan by 2024. It's also building a new flour factory to expand capacity.再生解説
◆in a bid to ～の試みとして、～しようとして、～を目指して
◆acreage エーカー数、面積、坪数
◆acreage エーカー数、面積、坪数