Japanese For Importing Spicy Food From Asian Countries

THE GROWING taste among Japanese for spicy foods and flavoured black teas has boosted their country as a potentially lucrative market for other Asian countries.

Spicy Thai curry and soup as well as tea from India were among the big winners this month at a food fair in Tokyo in which about 200 Asian companies took part.

"There is a potential market here. Demand for tea, especially flavoured tea, has been growing," said Jagmohan Chandrani, president of Japan Business Services Ltd., which imports tea from Calcutta-based link export.

Mr Chandrani said spiced tea such as masala chai and teas flavoured with caramel and grapes have become increasingly popular among Japanese women who like the healing, aromatic qualities of those products.

 

"Flavoured teas have become popular because a growing number of Japanese who suffer from stress enjoy the aroma and smell of tea that helps them relax, " said Mr Chandrani.

According to Japan's Finance Ministry, imports of black tea rose to 18,340 tons in 1998 from 10,261 tons in 1988. Imports of black tea in 1970 totalled only 6,435 tons. Japan imports nearly all its black tea from other countries.

The largest exporter to Japan of black tea in 1998 was Sri Lanka. It exported 7.9 million kilograms. Next were India at 4.5 million kilograms, Indonesia at 2.1 million kilograms and Kenya at 1.1 million kilograms.

Analysts said that although there are fewer black tea drinkers than coffee drinkers in Japan, it is possible that green tea drinkers would become part of a continuing shift to black tea.

According to 1997 statistics compiled by Japan Tea Association, about 6.6 per cent of the Japanese preferred black tea, 34.1 per cent preferred green tea and 59.3 per cent preferred coffee.

In 1970, 4.7 per cent preferred black tea, while 70 per cent preferred green tea and 25 per cent coffee, the association said.

The changes in tastes over the 27-year period confirmed the shift away from the Japanese traditional preference for green tea.

"We think the demand for black tea will grow more because we think health conscious Japanese consumers will shift from drinking coffee to black tea," said an official at the Tea Association.