Subject: Japan World Markets

From: [email-masked] (Andy Nachbaur)
Date: Wed, 13 Mar 1996 18:13:00 GMT

*Interesting Info on Japan Honey Market

Demand for Honey is Expected to Remain Stable

         Although Japanese demand for honey now sits at levels only half as
  high as those seen during the "bubble" economy, consumption is expected to
  remain stable in the coming years. Tradescope spoke to Mr. Tetsuo Shibuya,
  who works in the Marketing Division at Meidi-ya Co., Ltd., Japan's
  second-largest manufacturer of honey and related products, about this
  importdominated field.

   In Japan, honey has a strong, well-established image as a healthful
   food, and this image predates the current boom in health-food
   products. Although not all consumers know it, honey contains a wide
   variety of alkaline minerals that are an excellent compliment to the
   overly-acidic modern diet. At retail outlets in Japan, honey can be
   found not only in the confectionaries section, among assorted jams,
   sugars, and syrups, but also on the health-food and vitamin shelves.

   Meidi-ya's "Pure Honey," one of its popular honey products, for
   example, contains no added sugars, preservatives, or colorings, and is
   made entirely from natural honey. It uses a 50:50 blend of Chinese
   lotus honey and Argentinean clover honey to provide a taste that's
   well-matched to Japanese taste buds. The honey is heated in a water
   bath at temperatures below 60 to prevent the loss of vitamin C and
   then run through a filtering unit to remove any impurities. After
   quality inspections that cover color, taste, aroma, and vitamin
   content, the honey is bottled for shipment.

  Supermarkets Primary Distributors

   Supermarkets provide the main distribution route for honey products
   from Meidi-ya and other leading brands. Convenience stores, on
   average, carry two to three different honey products, also from the
   major manufacturers. The numerous smaller brands, which hold an
   estimated 30 percent of the market, can be found at lower-volume
   outlets such as healthfood shops and drugstores.

   As one of Japan's leading honey processors, Meidi-ya produces products
   for both the home-use and commercial sectors. When Japanese honey
   consumption peaked in 1990, driven by the explosive popularity of
   "honeyand-lemon" soft drinks, industrial demand accounted for fully 70
   percent of the market, while households represented just 30 percent.
   Today, however, the household and commercial sectors enjoy equal
   shares of the demand pie, and this is expected to continue in the
   coming years.

   In volume terms, demand for honey and related products boomed along
   with the economy in the late 1980s. Japanese consumption soared from
   42,513 tons in 1988 to 74,276 tons in 1990. With the economic slowdown
   and the passing of the honey-and-lemon drink fad, demand dropped back
   to more normal levels; consumption plummeted to 43,489 tons in 1991
   and 39,628 tons in 1993.

   In per-capita terms, consumption peaked in 1990, at 603 grams per
   year. This was an anomaly, however, and annual consumption has since
   settled back to more normal levels, falling to 352 grams in 1991 and
   290 grams in 1992. In the coming years, per-capita consumption is
   expected to hover around the 300 gram mark.

  Domestic Production Down but Firm

   The number of Japanese honey farmers is declining gradually; it stood
   at 7,211 in 1993, down from 7,453 in 1992 and 7,941 in 1991 said Mr.
   Shibuya. Volume has also fallen Japanese farmers produced 3,472 tons
   of honey in 1993, down nearly 35 percent from the 5,354 tons yielded
   in 1989. With the exception of 1990, however, production volume has
   remained nearly constant at 10 percent of Japanese consumption. Some
   120 Japanese firms are engaged in processing and marketing honey
   products, and this number, too, has remained fairly constant.
   According to 1992 data, the four largest processors including Meidi-ya
   garnered a combined market share of some 70 percent.

   In 1993, for example, imports accounted for 36,181 tons of Japan's
   total consumption of 39,628 tons. While down substantially from the
   peak figure of 69,435 tons posted in 1990, imports have remained
   steady over the years at about 90 percent of total consumption. One
   downside of the decline in demand has been shrinEg shelf space at
   supermarkets and other retailers. Instead, more space is going to jams
   and jellies, which offer better turnover thanks to shorter consumption
   periods.

  Unaffected by "Price Revolution"

   Honey is no longer the luxury item it once was in Japan. Prices,
   however, have yet to be affected by the "price revolution" overtaking
   many segments of the retail world here. In addition to firm prices,
   another problem the industry faces in promoting consumption is honey's
   commonly held image as a sweet, high-calorie food.

   A full-fledged revival in demand will depend in part on whether media
   such as health-related magazines can be persuaded to drum up some
   publicity for honey products. Another potential driver of sales growth
   would be the development of high-value-added products made using royal
   jelly.

   Royal jelly is a whitish honey relative that is a highly nutritious
   secretion that is fed to queen bees. Imports continue to rise, with
   uses ranging from foodstuffs and vitamin drinks to cosmetics. Vitamin
   drinks, sales of which remain buoyant, are expected to support healthy
   demand for this exotic and expensive substance.

   Another promising new product is propolis, a type of sap collected by
   bees from the buds of certain trees and used as a cement in the
   building of their hives. Tests have shown iat propolis helps to
   alleviate the symptoms of people suffering from allergies.

   Laboratory experiments wiffi mice have even suggested that the
   substance has beneficial effects in the treatrnent of cancer. Findings
   such as these should help to improve honey's healthful image among
   Japanese consumers.

   International Communication Department Fax 81-3-3582-0504

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