Firms Show Off Japanese Food at Event in Brazil

Sao Paulo, Oct. 13 (Jiji Press)–Japanese businesses showed off their food products at an event in Sao Paulo on Monday as demand for authentic “washoku” Japanese cuisine is growing in Brazil. OK Corporation Co., a company based in Yaizu, a city in the central Japan prefecture of Shizuoka known for its tuna fishing port, will start selling the fish in Brazil this month that the company imports from Japan by freezing it in minus 60 degrees Celsius to inoxidize. There is a business opportunity as tuna prices are high because of short supply, OK Corporation head Kenji Ogawa said at the event hosted by the Japan External Trade Organization. Tradbras Importacao E Exportacao Ltda., a Brazilian unit of Japanese food manufacturer Kikkoman Corp., showed off rice made in Niigata Prefecture, central Japan. Brazilians recognized Japanese foods’ high quality through trips to Japan, Tradbras President Masahiro Miura said. The company started importing Niigata-made rice earlier this year. It aims to sell the rice to retailers in addition to restaurants. Brazil imports few Japanese fishery products, which occupy about 20 pct of Japanese food exports, Tetsuya Inoue, director-general of JETRO’s Sao Paulo office, said, noting a large market opportunity for them. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]