Ships that carry air-behind the rise in tofu prices-September 13, 16:58
"The biggest exports are in the state of" air "."
This is the word of the port top of the port of Los Angeles, USA, which is the gateway to trade with Asia.
The United States, the largest exporter of soybeans to Japan.
However, it is more profitable to transport "Kara" containers to China than to export "soybeans" to Japan.
The effects of these incidents are also on those foods that are "cheap and natural".
What on earth is happening?
(Economics Department Reporter Yosuke Ikegawa / Washington Bureau Reporter Yosuke Yoshitake / Los Angeles Bureau Reporter Nana Yamada)
"Tofu" price increase?
"Tofu" is a regular supermarket bargain and is indispensable for everyday dining.
It is said to be a "price honor student" along with eggs, whose prices have remained almost unchanged for more than 10 years.
However, there are now movements to raise prices for soybean products such as tofu and fried tofu.
In July, an industry group made by a tofu maker submitted a document appealing to supermarkets and others for the first time in 14 years.
Some manufacturers have already begun negotiations to raise prices.
Soybean prices soar
Why is the price of tofu raised now?
One of the reasons is the soaring price of soybeans as a raw material.
The main factors for domestic products are unseasonable weather due to heavy rain, and for imported products, the increase in imports from China and the increasing demand for biofuels that have less impact on the environment.
In particular, soybean futures prices have skyrocketed since last summer after the spread of the new corona infection.
At one point, the price increased by more than 80%.
Is the soybean price soaring the only reason for the price increase?
When I talked to a tofu maker headquartered in Saitama City, it seems that that is not the only reason.
Although the price of soybeans has risen in the past, it is said that the price has been maintained by adjusting the balance between domestic and imported products.
But this time, he says, "It's a crisis situation like no other in the past."
Mr. Iwasaki
"I think that retailers want to sell products that are even 1 yen cheaper than their rivals, so we have made corporate efforts not to reflect them in the shipping price. However, this time the situation is unprecedentedly critical. So, we are already over the limit as a manufacturer. I am in danger that the shipping price of tofu will increase by about 1.5 times next year. "
The "Kara" container is ...
"I wonder if this story has something to do with the price increase of tofu ...
" The editor in charge of "News Watch 9" gave the key information to the interview team.
It is said that he eats tofu, yuba, soy milk, and natto every day to maintain his health, but recently he heard such news from public radio in the United States.
Editor-in-chief:
"Container ships, after unloading at the port of Los Angeles, return to Asia with" Kara "and carry what Americans want. That's why American farmers buy soybeans. Even if I want to export to Japan, I think that the situation where it cannot be exported continues. "
Transformed into global logistics
Do you carry the container as "empty"?
What exactly does that mean?
Made in the United States, which accounts for more than 70% of Japan's soybean imports.
According to international logistics experts, most of the imported soybeans that are the raw material for tofu are usually transported by container ship from ports on the west coast of the United States to Japan.
After that, some of the container ships went to China.
We will load goods for export to the United States in China and return to the port on the west coast again.
Shipping companies efficiently earn freight while traveling to different locations on the same ship.
Soybeans have been stably supplied through these orbital courses.
However, the economic recovery from the Corona disaster caused a change in global logistics.
Last year, in the world's largest consumer country, the United States, where all major cities were locked down, the magma of consumption, which had been stagnant with the spread of vaccination, exploded at once.
The economy has recovered sharply.
China responded to this by quickly recovering from the damage caused by the corona.
As a large number of products such as furniture, home appliances, and toys were exported in response to the demand of the United States, shipping companies are trying to collect container ships on the route from China to the United States, even if it is a little overwhelming. It is said that it has spread.
Looking at the statistics of the Japan Maritime Center, the amount of containers shipped from Asia such as China to the United States between January and July increased by 33% compared to the same period last year. I did.
When I checked the container fare, it was as follows.
The July fare from Shanghai, China to Los Angeles on the west coast is $ 11,150 per 40-foot container.
It has jumped six times as much as last January before the spread of the infection.
On the other hand, the current fare for the route from Los Angeles to Yokohama, where soybeans are transported, is $ 2820.
Fares to the United States and Japan are actually four times as different.
Concentrate containers on "dollar box routes"
You can't earn a fare by carrying a container of "Kara", but you can arrive in China earlier than usual and return to the United States with your luggage because it doesn't take long to load and unload your luggage.
For this reason, if containers are concentrated on the route to the United States, which has become a "dollar box route" with high fares, it is possible to make sufficient profits even if one way is "empty".
We spoke with Professor Takuma Matsuda of Takushoku University, who is familiar with international logistics.
Professor Matsuda
"The rapid economic recovery after the corona has overheated the demand for containers from China to the United States. In order to meet this demand, shipping companies have become an abnormal situation in which they collect containers from routes around the world. I don't know what the future of the economy will be, but for shipping companies, the real intention is "I want to earn while I can earn." In the meantime, the balance of global logistics was greatly disrupted and it became impossible to return easily. "
Los Angeles Harbor crowded
Los Angeles Harbor on the west coast of the United States, the gateway to trade with Asia.
The port was still very crowded this month.
Container ships waiting for their turn to enter the port are anchored off the coast of the port.
At the destination guided by the person in charge of the port, there was a high pile of unloaded "Kara" containers.
A person in charge at the Port of Los Angeles
"This is the container storage area for'Kara'waiting for departure. There are 6 levels at the highest point. If you have luggage, you can't do this."
Many ships loaded with this "Kara" container were leaving for China.
America's largest export is "air"
According to the Port Authority of Los Angeles, more than 329,900 20-foot containers were shipped overseas in July as "empty".
It's up 20% compared to a year ago.
At an online press conference in August, the port head of the Port of Los Angeles explained the trade situation:
Director General Seloka
"The movement to carry
empty
containers is increasing, more than three times as many as containers loaded with exports from the United States. Now that we are carrying many empty containers to Asia, it is the largest in the United States. Exported goods are in a state where they can be called "air". "
Soybeans cannot be exported
A situation in which "Kara" containers are heading to China and there is a shortage of containers to carry goods to Japan.
"It's the worst thing in the last 30 years,"
said Bob Sinner, president of a company that has been exporting soybeans to Japan for over 30 years in North Dakota, in the Midwestern United States.
However, this year, we could not secure a container, and exports have been delayed for nearly two months compared to the usual year.
In the United States, soybean harvesting will begin in earnest until October, but it is said that there will be insufficient storage space for new harvests.
For this reason, we are asking them to load soybeans in containers bound for Japan, but the fare has doubled from a year ago.
Bob
"I've been doing this for 30 years and it's never been so irritating. The harsh situation is likely to continue for months, but I hope it will improve over time."
Japan "buying and losing" containers
Japan on the other hand.
A logistics company in Tokyo that arranges containers internationally was also busy dealing with this abnormal situation.
"We have received urgent requests from customers we haven't had a relationship with, to do
something about it,
"
said Go Nakajima, the manager of the container business.
Since joining the company in 1991, he has been in the logistics field for nearly 30 years and has been stationed in New York, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
I have been involved in various adjustments between the shipper and the shipping company.
However, he says that this shortage of containers is an abnormal situation that he has never experienced in the past.
Mr. Nakajima
"Japan is" losing "and" buying "containers, and it is difficult to bring containers to Japan. I have been involved in marine transportation for about 30 years, but there is such a shortage of containers. For the first time, the way the supply chain is turned has changed, and the rules of thumb so far are completely useless. Every day is the first time, but I have to make an effort not to stop the distribution to Japan. "
Impact on the table How far ...
How far will the impact of a shortage of containers on the dining table spread?
I asked Professor Matsuda of Takushoku University again.
Professor Matsuda
"I think there will be occasions when daily necessities such as tofu and natto, which have relatively low selling prices and a high ratio of transportation costs, will suffer if we do not take steps to raise prices."
Regarding the future outlook ...
Professor Matsuda
"Because cargo movements are active until the Christmas sales season in the United States, container shortages and high freight rates may continue. Prices will return to normal during China's New Year and Spring Festival, and exports to the United States will decrease. I think it's likely to be around February next year. "
Price increases one after another
Vegetables, flour, cooking oil, margarine, mayonnaise, coffee shops ...
Recently, I think there are many people who have realized that the prices of familiar products that are indispensable to the dining table are rising.
Food prices are affected by a variety of factors, including unseasonable weather, growing demand in China, and changing logistics.
How will the world economy, which has changed drastically due to the corona disaster, affect our dining table?
We will continue to cover carefully.
Reporter of the Ministry of Economic Affairs
Yosuke Ikegawa
Joined the
station in
2002
After working at the
Sendai station and the Yamagata station
, he is
currently affiliated.
Washington bureau reporter
Yosuke Yoshitake
Joined NHK
Nagoya
Broadcasting
Station in
2004
After working at the Ministry of Economic Affairs, he is
currently affiliated.
Los Angeles bureau reporter
Nana Yamada
2009. He joined
Nagasaki stations economy section
through the international section
current affiliation from this year