Japanese food evolves from "boom" to "fixture"
On the previous day of the business talk event, JETRO organized an on-site visit program of local importers and retailers for the delegates from Japan, in which they could conduct interviews on local needs. They also promoted their products to encourage these buyers to come to the event.
According to the survey conducted by JETRO Bangkok, the number of Japanese restaurants in Thailand has shown a consistent increase of approximately 10 to 20% every year. Demand for Japanese ingredients is also expanding along with the growing popularity of Japanese food. The total exports of agricultural, forestry, fishery and food products from Japan to Thailand ranks 6th by country and region.
Through the visit to local buyers on the front line, participants felt that Japanese food is in the process of evolving from a "boom" to a "fixture." Comments included "It was a good opportunity for me to directly hear opinions of local buyers," and "We were able to brush up on our business talk skills."
Tangible results were achieved through the event, including encouraging further demand for Japanese food in Thailand and, in association with it, raising the likelihood of expanding exports of Japanese food products.
In the future, JETRO will hold the same business talks related to Japanese food exports in Hong Kong and Singapore while searching for new buyers.