Comparing Japan And American Food Markets :: essays research papers

Comparing Japan and American nourishment Markets     The Japanese Market has become vital to the U.S. Economy. Japan is thenumber one export grocery for the United States. In 1993, Japan accounted for37.6 percent of the total growth in U.S. value-added exports.     U.S. food products, in particular, are a huge market in Japan. Americanagricultural exports to Japan in 1993 were $8.7 billion. About one-third ofJapanese agricultural imports come from the United States. However, there issometimes a mixed reception in Japan regarding products from the United States.Japanese, on one hand, wish to do things "American" ever since the Second WorldWar. But, on the other hand, U.S. products are perceived as less sophisticatedthan Japanese and European food products, in product formulation or packaging.Also, U.S. products are considered not as safe as domestics ones, ascribable to the useof pesticides and chemical additives and the partiality o f the Japanese consumerto purchase Japanese items.     The reason for the large volume of exporting to Japan is due to UnitedStates comparative advantages. Food products are very expensive to produce inJapan. Japans current labor shortage, combined with import restrictions anddomestic price stabilization programs, have driven up domestic production costs.     The Japanese food consumption pattern consist of an openness to foreignproducts and a strong interest in things transnational. All types ofinternational cuisine can be found in Japan. Many varieties of tropical andimported fruits, such as Florida grapefruit, California cherries, New Zealandkiwifruit, and Hawaiian papayas are right away available in supermarkets anddepartment stores, as are imported alcoholic beverages ranging from Kentuckybourbon and Chinese beer to Russian vodka and California sake.     Japanese food consumption is marked by short-term trends. For e xample,Korean and Mexican food became popular a few years ago and then unpopular.There have also been Italian and Spanish food booms.     The Japanese economic recession has shifted the focus of many consumersto the more affordable neighborhood restaurants that feature traditionalJapanese dishes. This has made consumers price aware at grocery counters,which benefits cheaper imported goods. As a result, imported foods account forover half of Japans average annual caloric intake. Moreover, with Japaneseagriculture contracting, Japans confidence on (and openness toward) imported foodproducts will continue to incr console.ConclusionIn the future, the United States may no longer be considered to have acomparative advantage for food products in Japan. Countries in the westernPacific are likely to provide stiff competition for the U.S., due to the shortershipping distances and the ease of conducting long-distance business from within neighboring time zones. Offshore i nvestment for processing exporting