Hydroponics a growing market in Japan
A new trend is finally taking root in Japan’s food market: factories, no larger than a tatami mat, are growing vegetables.
The small factories, produced by companies such as Mirai Co. and Mitsubishi Chemical Corp., boast some of Japan’s newest LED and hydroponic technology. They consist of tiered shelves carrying a soil-medium or liquid fertilizer and are lit-up by LED lights that mimic sunlight. The goal, according to a Mitsubishi Chemical spokesman, is to be able to set them up anywhere in the world, “whether in a desert, frigid clime or the middle of the city”.
The factories, however, are also a response to the changing Japanese consumer. Japan has been plagued by food scandals in recent years, such as the 2008 case of pesticide-tainted dumplings imported from China. With Japan reliant on imported foods, growing a mere 40% itself, the factory boxes provide buyers with the reassurance they seek: crops grown in a controlled and safe environment.
To what extent these boxes will succeed, however, remains an open question: Mitsubishi Chemical is pricing the average box at US$550,998.