Poultry shortage in Japan
Covid-!9 outbreaks in several Asian countries, that are also suppliers of poultry for Japan, and delays in shipping have generated a poultry shortage in the Japanese market, informs Nikkei Asia. Chicken has become the most visible example of Japanese shortages stemming from Southeast Asia, where the coronavirus pandemic has slowed poultry processing plants in key supplier Thailand.
Retailers have imposed limits in purchasing, while restaurants have redimensioned portions for their clients. The country's biggest convenience store chain, 7-Eleven, has stopped selling fried chicken on skewers -- a popular snack -- in certain regions. Meanwhile, some restaurants have limited poultry offerings to a paltry single skewer per customer. Japanese inventories of imported chicken in August were down 20% from year-earlier levels, according to Tokyo-based Agriculture and Livestock Industries Corporation. Beef supplies are also short and prices have doubled from the same period of 2020. Many in the industry believe supply chain disruptions will drag on. The potential for a resurgence of coronavirus infections in the winter adds to the uncertain outlook. Meantime, consumers have become more cautious in spending their money and a decline in meat consumption is expected in the following months.
"Consumers may not be able to buy the items that they want. Assuming that infections are brought under control, there will be a global recovery in eating out and demand will rise. If supplies decrease due to a shortage of containers or other factors, product shortages will likely continue," said Koya Miyamae, senior economist at SMBC Nikko Securities.
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