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The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

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Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#81

Post by fictioncircle »

hkmurakami wrote: post #24
yladiz wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I doubt it, especially since you can generally get a much wider range of varieties of potatoes in the US than in Japan, not just organic/non-organic, but different colored potatoes as well. My guess is that the rhetoric coming from the companies that US potato quality is lower is more due to the government being protectionist about national agriculture. It's also probably due to the mentality that producers want spec…

I remember seeing a "food security" campaign where demonstraters wanted the country to achieve 100% food sufficiency as a national security prerogative. Wasn't sure if it was a strange form of nationalism, or a veiled lobbying effort by an interest group (the abundance of very small scale farmers across the countryside)

Farming in the US is heavily subsidized due to a nexus of national security, the farm lobby, and food stamps.

So it's a legitimate concern many nation's have, even EU countries have similar programs.

In the US it has gotten out of hand, however.

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#82

Post by interfixus »

memracom wrote: post #2

Life on an island...

Life on an island whose population has proven itself exceptionally, uniquely, mindblowingly capable of running af civilized society and carving out their own distinct and highly successful niche in the world, or rather on top of it.

They will emerge alive from this potato calamity, trust me.

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#83

Post by michaelvoz »

mc32 wrote: post #56
emmelaich wrote: post #13

It still amazes me that potatoes and tomatoes, originally South America only, have become a food staple in just about every country since.

Well, there is also: Rice --domesticated in China Corn --Mexico Wheat --Middle east These are now pretty universal and are more important than either Tomatoes or Potatoes.

Fertile Crescent* not Middle East. The Middle East is not really an agreed upon fixed set of places, theres a not-insigifnicant variance in how one can describe it.

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#84

Post by JumpCrisscross »

yladiz wrote: post #3

It's an interesting experience seeing some shelves in 7-11 here in Tokyo partly empty due to this shortage -- outside of perishable goods like onigiri, it's pretty uncommon to see something like potato chips missing on a shelf. I wonder how long it'll take for the shortage to end, and if they'll be able to mitigate it by importing. One thing it doesn't mention in this article is that companies are pretty strict about…

> companies are pretty strict about quality of their imported goods like potatoes in Japan

>> Calbee spokeswoman "cited regulatory hurdles, which limit the amount of imported potatoes that can be used in products, as partly responsible for the shortage"

Japanese farmers are reliable voters. The evidence for an electoral motive, over a national security imperative, is Japanese farms' small plots and low yields [1]. The system is set up to maximise the number of farmers (i.e. voters who farm) over production.

[1] http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21576154-fewer-bigger-plo...

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#85

Post by [deleted] »

emodendroket wrote: post #12
seunosewa wrote: post #5

I was thinking, "this is ridiculous; why can't they just import more potatoes?" and then I found this: "She also cited regulatory hurdles, which limit the amount of imported potatoes that can be used in products, as partly responsible for the shortage." No, it is primarily responsible for the shortage.

If, as your post seems to be recommending, such regulations were abolished, Japanese farmers would pretty much cease to exist because of their inability to compete with cheaper imports. Maybe you consider that an unacceptable tradeoff for some potato chip shortages but it's not clear that the Japanese share your sense of priorities.

[deleted]

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#86

Post by iopq »

emodendroket wrote: post #54
iopq wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would assume maintaining healthy trade relationships is important for food shortages like these, as well.

Is the claim here that Japan is not able to trade as often as it would like? That seems to be obviously wrong.

Of course it's not. When you erect trade barriers with other countries, they don't want to trade with you that much either. So exports to other countries are probably limited by the import policy of Japan, since they never made trade deals that lower tariffs on both ends.

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#87

Post by iopq »

emodendroket wrote: post #55
iopq wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No amount of failed crops would cause a shortage if trade were free since there's a region in the world SOMEWHERE that's having a good year.

I suppose that's why there are no more famines anymore.

If you have money, and trade is fairly free, you would never have a famine unless it's world-wide.

I mean, let's say all of your crops failed. So what? Just buy them from another country. It's a little more expensive, but better than starving.

So why do people starve? It's when your money can't buy anything from another country because people from other countries don't have faith in your currency. Or when you can't trade at all for some reason.

Famines are chiefly an economic problem.

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#88

Post by jbm »

jbm wrote: post #6
ajross wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Life on an island with a historically strict protectionist food policy. There is no potato shortage, per se (per the article, I'm surely no expert). There's a shortage of potatoes from Hokkaido, and domestic consumers aren't prepared for (or allowed to) buy them from an international market. Japan isn't the only nation to do this, of course. But they're one of the worst.

Agreed; you can also see the recent butter shortages in Japan for an example of the same issue. As for why that happens; the farmers are (were?) a huge political ally for the LDP. (The TPP was going to be a huge change for that, but alas, it won't be happening..)

I was wrong about the TPP being completely dead.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2017/04/16/national/tokyo-s...

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#89

Post by rlkf »

This reminds me of the Norwegian Butter Crisis of 2011, although that one was caused by a demand-side shock from low-carb diet fads.

Our condolances to the Japanese people; our hearts are with you.

Re: The Great Japan Potato-Chip Crisis

#90

Post by mistermann »

JumpCrisscross wrote: post #84
yladiz wrote: post #3

It's an interesting experience seeing some shelves in 7-11 here in Tokyo partly empty due to this shortage -- outside of perishable goods like onigiri, it's pretty uncommon to see something like potato chips missing on a shelf. I wonder how long it'll take for the shortage to end, and if they'll be able to mitigate it by importing. One thing it doesn't mention in this article is that companies are pretty strict about…

> companies are pretty strict about quality of their imported goods like potatoes in Japan >> Calbee spokeswoman "cited regulatory hurdles, which limit the amount of imported potatoes that can be used in products, as partly responsible for the shortage" Japanese farmers are reliable voters. The evidence for an electoral motive, over a national security imperative, is Japanese farms' small plots and low yields [1]. Th…

Off topic, but diversity in economic approaches like this is one of the beneficial things we lose as we embrace globalism.
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