November 27, 2006

Japanese beef consumption remains subdued
 

Beef consumption in Japan dropped 6 percent during September compared with September 2005, to total 63,870 tonnes boneless weight (boneless weight-bwt).

For the nine months to September, Japanese beef consumption eased 3 percent to 578,195 tonnes bwt. This was about 27 percent below the peak consumption of 2,000 that is pre-Japan and US BSE.

Tight supply of beef has been pushing up prices and consequently dampening consumer demand. Contributing to the tight supplies are the small imports from the US and the historically low beef stocks, totalling just 70,313 tonnes bwt, a 3-percent below September 2005 levels.

Similarly, consumption of pork fell 8 percent in September to 135,389 tonnes bwt, with consumption back 4 percent during the first nine months of the year. Supplies of pork also tightened in September, with stocks falling 19 percent on the same period last year.

While chicken consumption has been declining since May this year, it remains relatively unchanged when compared to September 2005, at 137,102 tonnes bwt. Stocks of chicken have contracted over recent months but remain 22 percent higher than year ago levels.