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Japan
Japan wants its sake to go more global. (Image via Cookly)
Japan prepares ¥1.78 bil to promote its alcohol
The Japanese surely love their sake. They would like to share their sake with the world. So, the Land of the Rising Sun has allocated ¥1.78 million --1.31 billion yen is in the budget for fiscal 2020 starting in April and the remainder in the supplementary budget for the current fiscal year to March -- in the 2020 state budget to support the promotion of their sake and their other alcoholic products.Of course, the action came amid the upcoming 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. As a matter of fact, the budget allocated for the sake of promotion is seven times bigger than in 2019.
According to the Deputy Director of the Liquor Tax and Industry Division, Yui Nagahara, the Japanese government will set up an 18-staff office at the National Tax Agency in July, just a month before the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics.
Collaborating with Japan External Trade Organization, the office will assist the Japanese companies in selling sake to the overseas and domestic market and promote the branding of sake and other Japanese alcoholic products.
The office will cover understanding the market demand and passing relevant information, such as sales routes, foreign buyers, and others, for the export. Also, to negotiate with foreign instances on lowering liquor taxes.
To answer the global demand, Nagahara said that ¥470 million are allocated for the National Research Institute for Brewing to invent new and tastier products.
Other initiative includes establishing sake booths for the visitors to try the Japanese sake, including at the airports and event media centers. Also, there will be tours to sake breweries, involving local breweries, tourist operators, and public transportation services.
Rice-based distilled spirit, “Awamori” from Okinawa is also promoted to revitalize the economy of Okinawa, assigned as the venue for Olympics marathon.
The world is loving Japanese delicacies. The Japanese government tabulated that in 2018, more than 25,700 kiloliters of sake were exported, a 9.6 percent hiked from 2017, breaking the record for the ninth consecutive year. That means, ¥22.2 billion came from sake alone. The sake went mainly to the United States (U.S), followed by Hong Kong, China, and South Korea (S. Korea).
Source: https://bit.ly/2tvfF2E
