Retailer Aeon to sell Japan-U.S. blended rice
With rice prices staying high, Japanese retail giant Aeon said Wednesday that it will sell a blend of rice produced in Japan and the United States.
Under the name "Nisui no Takumi," the blended rice will be sold from around April 10 at some 2,000 stores across Japan except the Hokkaido and the Tohoku region.
The price will be ¥3,002 per 4 kilograms, lower than those of regular products currently available.
The product is a blend of 80% U.S.-grown rice and 20% Japanese rice, according to Aeon, based in Chiba.
"We are eager to sell rice at a price as low as possible," Executive Vice President Mitsuko Tsuchiya told a launch event in Chiba, explaining that many customers still say they cannot afford rice.
Tsuchiya also said that rice released from the government's stockpiles is beginning to appear on Aeon store shelves.
