Tourism and Investment in Japan

 Japanese diet falls short of required vegetable intake Kagome Co., Ltd., founded in 1899 and headquartered in Nagoya, manufactures and sells condiments, foods and beverages in Japan. It is also involved in purchase, production and sale of seeds, seedlings, fruits and vegetables. Kagome has a history of more than 100 years in a tomato processing business.  It has 60.9% share of the tomato ketchup market in Japan and 61.2% share of the mixed vegetable and fruit juice market. Kagome who supplies 17.7% of Japan's green and yellow vegetable consumption and 4.4% of vegetable consumption has been greatly contributing to maintain the health of Japanese people.  The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare recommends Japanese adult people to consume at least 350 g of vegetables per day to maintain their health. However, according to a survey by the Ministry, the intake of vegetables by each Japanese is 281.4 g a day, which is about 70 g short. Looking at the changes over the last ...

Takayama Festival designated as an important intangible cultural property Autumn Takayama Festival is one of the most well known festivals in Japan with a plethora of tourists from home and abroad visiting for it every year.  Takayama Festival is said to have started sometime between the late 16th century and 17th century and comprised of two festivals: “Sanno Matsuri” in spring and “Hachiman Matsuri” in autumn.  It is designated as an important intangible cultural property by the government as a traditional event retaining remnants of the Edo period which has been carefully protected and handed down by the local people to this day.  It is also said to be one of the three most beautiful festivals in Japan. The autumn festival is called Hachiman Matsuri. In a festival parade, 11 matsuri-yatai festival floats go around the town for two days displaying their gorgeous appearance for spectators. Ａ very popular marionette show is performed on one of those floats. A Shinto...

  Japanese economy starts to get a traction gradually The Japanese cabinet office announced that the coincident index of business conditions for August 2020, which indicates the current state of the economy, was 79.4, up 1.1 points from the previous month rising for the third consecutive month.  Business activities depressed by the pandemic gradually started to gain a bit more traction with exports of automobiles to the United States and other countries picking up. The assessment of current business conditions has also been revised upward from "deteriorating" to "stopping to decline" for the first time in a year and three months.  The leading index, which indicates the outlook of the economy several months later, also increased by 2.1 points from the previous month marking the third consecutive month of improvement. According to another survey by the cabinet office to gauge sentiment of more than 2,000 workers such as taxi drivers, hotel workers and restaurant s...