On March 8-9, delegates from the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in Kumamoto Prefecture and the Kumamoto Representative Office in Singapore visited Sydney to conduct market research in Australia. CLAIR Sydney briefed the delegation on market trends relating to Japanese food in Australia and more specifically Sydney as they plan to export rice and green tea produced in Kumamoto.
We told the delegates that although the demand for rice grown in Japan is increasing, its market share is still quite small. Cost sensitivities limit its use in restaurants to high-end sushi establishments and Japanese expats make up the bulk of retail sales. We also mentioned that although green tea (or matcha) flavoured sweets are very popular in Sydney the number of Australians who regularly drink Japanese green tea is not particularly high.
We also accompanied them to Woolworths, Coles, Sydney Fish Market, Tokyo Mart and many other stores. The inspections were informative and meaningful as the delegates were able to learn more about local distribution channels and price.
