Japanese spending on fresh fruit is starting to track closer to consumption the same time last year, according to new figures for March released by Japan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Statistics Bureau, shining a brighter light on the sector than the first two months of the year.
Average spending per household on fruit hit ¥2,534 in March, close to last year’s ¥2,593 and reflecting the usual slight March spike in Japanese fruit expenditure.
This year’s January and February figures were markedly lower than the same periods in 2009.
Consumption by volume has continued to track strongly; for March average household purchases were 6.8kg, on last year’s 6.75kg.
The recovery has been largely led by bananas, Japan’s main imported fruit; average household spending on bananas has climbed from 69 per cent year-on-year in January to 73 per cent in February. For March, that figure hit 78 per cent of the spending in the same month last year.
