According to a survey conducted from last September to October by Japan’s Yano Research Institute Ltd., 46 Japanese processed-food manufacturers are developing and manufacturing more household foods than wholesale foods. Home Meal Replacement (HMR) was the largest at 71.7%, followed by health supplements at 52.2%. More and more consumers are eating and drinking at home rather than outside, which is largely credited to the surge in a more health conscious public.
A survey by Geek Works, an operator of application and social media for sharing recipes, also shows that 70 percent of people eat out less and eat at home than before the declaration of a state of emergency. As eating out is reduced, more and more consumers are enjoying special menus or looking for expensive but luxurious foods. In particular, as more companies began to let their workers work remotely, e-commerce sales of food have increased. Liquor products that can be enjoyed lightly at home are also gaining popularity.
“Healthspan”, a high-profile terminology which means the period of life spent in good health, free from the chronic diseases and disabilities of aging, has raised consumers’ interests in the consumption of essential nutrients. Nikkei Trendy, a monthly economy magazine, explains the growing popularity of high-protein products that process soybeans as puff-type snacks to be eaten with yogurt and ice cream. Instant soup made of superfood such as Quinoa also gained popularity. Bean has been spotlighted as a new healthy food since it was introduced in a Japanese media in 2018, but it’s bland taste was too ambiguous to make out a menu with it. However, its combination with yogurt and ice cream can bring out delicate tastes, especially when sweet flavor and crunchy texture is added.
In addition, the corona pandemic has been all about healthy food to strengthen immunity, and this has triggered an explosive sales of yogurt, vegetables and natto products. Since Japanese are prone to be particular in packaging and ingredient labeling of products, the product, marked “GABA-containing” to help improve immunity, was in great demand.
Despite these health conscious trends, there are still people who never stop having instant foods. However, the trend continued in the instant food market, which unleashed a large number of products featuring ‘low-salt’ and ‘low-sugar’. Nissin released a low-salinity and low-sugar lineup of its signature cup noodle products.
In order to eat HMR foods, we used to heat up the product in the microwave and move it to a bowl, but recently, products that can be eaten immediately by heating them and opening the package are being released. There are many products that can be eaten mainly as a substitute for meals, such as pizza, rice balls, and chicken breasts, and there are “One-Hand Meal” products that do not require spoons or chopsticks as well as bowls that are taken out.
As the Japanese food market becomes ripe and more diverse consumers enter into the market, products are being more tailored to adult tastes than those of children and students. Ice cream products ranked first to third in the 2020 Frozen Award Grand Prix hosted by food distributor, ‘Nippon Access’, are all targeted at adults rather than children. The first place was brown sugar bean powder glutinous rice cake ice cream released by ‘Häagen-Dazs Japan’, while second and third were both dark chocolate ice cream with high cacao content. Frozen side dish products for lunch boxes are also being released by companies to cater to adults’ tastes, as demand for children and students decreases due to low birth rates. More than 70% of the demand for frozen side dishes is from adults, including single-person households, double-income households, and office workers who carry lunch boxes to the company.
Japan’s health functional food market has shrunk due to the pandemic, but sales of immune-enhancing products have increased. According to market research firm, ‘Intage’, the market size of Japanese health supplements in 2020 was 1.4095 trillion yen ($1.26 million), down 4.8 percent from a year earlier. In the aftermath of the recession caused by the pandemic, consumption of high-priced health functional foods has decreased. Among health functional foods, sales of immunity-enhancing products have shown significant growth. According to market research firm, ‘Fuji Keizai’, Japanese sales of products related to “improving immunity” in 2020 rose 8.9% year-on-year to $140.6 billion ($0.126 million). As consumers’ health consciousness increased last year, demand for protein and vitamin supplements such as propolis and protein increased.
The door-to-door sales market for nutritional products fell 1.7 percent last year. While door sales business has been a traditional method for the offline markets, companies are changing marketing methods, such as conducting business activities remotely. Sales of health supplements in offline retailers such as department stores, natural food stores, and convenience stores also fell 2.2% last year, due to a sudden drop in demand and shorter business hours. However, online sales are reported to be increasing. According to a survey on household consumption by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), the cumulative online purchase of health supplements from January to October 2020 was 6,375 yen ($57.4: based on households with two or more people). The size of the health supplements market for retailers that mainly sell drugs and household goods such as pharmacies and drugstores also increased by 3.4 percent year-on-year. According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), sales of health supplements increased 1.4 percent year-on-year in the drugstore from January to October 2020. The demand has increased mainly among younger generations who are suffering from lack of exercise and obesity due to emerging work from home culture.
Although the pandemic has brought significant changes to society, the public has become more conscious of sanitation and health products have become more diverse. Sales routes have also shifted from traditional large retail outlets to smaller retail outlets. The online market has been favoured rather than the offline market. When doing business with Japanese companies, these points should be considered.
Mike Choi
Asia Journal
