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Food shock - Voices from overseas (part 1): Interview with U.S. Ambassador
to Japan Thomas Schieffer: U.S. principle is not to place restrictions
on exports
(Provisional Translation by U.S. Embassy, Tokyo)
YOMIURI (Page 9)
April 11, 2008
The rate of food self-sufficiency for Japan has fallen to 39%, making it the lowest among advanced industrialized countries. Moreover, concern has heightened about the safety of imported foods, and the country has been hit by a wave of soaring food prices. How is Japan's food problem seen by foreign eyes? We ask concerned parties [in this series], starting with U.S. Ambassador to Japan Thomas J. Schieffer:
Japanese farmers are aging. Unless the number of people involved in agriculture does not increase, Japan's (food) situation will likely worsen. I think the way to resolve this is by Japan further opening its agricultural market. Agriculture is the most protected area in the global economy. Japanese consumers are paying higher prices for food than they need to. The more the market is opened, the more prices will drop.
There are many Japanese who have experienced hunger during World War II, so the emphasis on food security is understandable. However, the economy has globalized, and today, there is a much richer variety of foods than in the 1960s and '70s. In today's world, it is impossible for a country to self-produce all of its food.
The U.S. has a principle of not placing restrictions on exports. We learned a lesson from the embargo on soybeans (due to a crop failure in the 1970s) that export restrictions neither fill political needs nor market needs. The United States, Canada, and Australia are the world's most advanced democracies and practice free trade. Japan need not fear that food would be used (as a threat through such measures as embargoes).
Restrictions on food safety must be led by science. Japan has restricted the importation of beef to cows that are under 20 months of age, but this import condition is not based on science but is a decision based on a political viewpoint. Based on the OIE standards, removing the age limit would be a better solution from the long-term perspective.
The world can produce sufficient food supplies by applying new technologies. One example of that is genetic modification. When I was a child in the 1950s and '60s, the world's population was growing at an amazing pace, and it was feared that there would not be enough food supply. However, in reality, because of technological innovation, such a situation will not happen.
For the original Japanese article please click here
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