Japan is, and will continue to be a very important destination for Australia’s high quality and safe food exports. Likewise, Japan has many products to export to Australia. One such area where trade and investment has grown in recent years has been in the food and wine industries.

Food at the cutting edge

The Australian food industry is ever-evolving, and abroad it is still a little obscure as to what Australian dining is. To get an idea of Australian dining one only needs to say the name ‘Bill’ and it becomes clear. Australia’s Bill Granger, owner and operator of the highly successful restaurant bills in Sydney has been serving up delectable food to locals for years. His newest bills venture, a restaurant in Yokohama, a sibling to his Kamakura restaurant, is just as adored there as it is at home.
The reasons for Bill’s success, particularly in the Japanese market, are evident; food at bills is simple, smart, and modern. It is also said that bills is changing the way we eat breakfast. Bill’s concept of ‘slow food’ and organic food promote ideas of healthy, hand-made eating together with friends and family.
Similarly, the Australian wine industry has a great foothold in Japan with the recent introduction and success of Penfolds and Yellow Tail wines in Japan. According to the Global Trade Atlas and Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation, consumption of Australian wines in Japan is slowly increasing despite the stagnation of total wine consumption in Japan. Australia exported 9.5 million litres in 2009 making it the sixth largest exporter by value to Japan. This is great news for Australian wine producers.
It is not just in wining and dining where Australian producers can thrive. The issue of food traceability and whether foods are organic is a concern for discerning Japanese consumers. Thus, Australian produce will have market advantage in the organic niche of Japan. Take Melbourne based company ‘Loving Earth’. They produce products that are pure, minimally processed and grown organically in a sustainable way. In many countries, there is a growing niche for companies such as this one.

Trade partnerships building success

The Japanese food industry is also set to receive a boon abroad. The successful conclusion of an FTA between Japan and Australia could help drive the burgeoning trend of ‘izakaya’ style drinking establishments, which serve a selection of both Japanese sake and wine, alongside casual Japanese food.
This trend is aided by the increase of Japanese products and sake entering Australia which allows Japanese izakaya owners to offer a more authentic experience to patrons. This once traditional mode of wining and dining is becoming fashionable and showcases the healthy, high-quality produce for which Japan has been known for years.
We can see increasing var iet ies of sake occupying shelf space in local bottle shops and liquor stores and thus gaining a more respected status in Australia. And like wine, sake varies in price, quality, style, region and raw materials.
Australia imports many varieties and brands of Japanese sake so there is plenty to choose from, however not all sake in Australia is imported. There is a locally produced sake in Australia, produced under the label ‘Go-Shu’, made by Sun Masamune in New South Wales from Japonica rice and Blue Mountains water. Interestingly, some of this Australian produced sake is exported back to Japan.

The recovery of Japan

Trade of food and sake will continue to grow after the Tohoku Pacific Earthquake on March 11. We need not be concerned about the safety of Japanese products as the Government of Japan is taking every possible measure to ensure that no contaminated product will be sold at home or abroad.
The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs is preparing to issue certificates of origin as one of the measures to dispel lingering concerns. The Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) is committed to cont inue promot ing Japan as a desi rable destination for business, as well as supporting further trade and investment with Japanese partners.