Japan: Supermarkets, Cooperations Wage Campaigns to Promote Vegetables

Japanese corporations and business organizations are following the example of the United States in movements to encourage their employees and customers to eat more than 350 grams of vegetables and more than 200 grams of fruits a day.

The original "5 A DAY" drive designed to promote better health was launched jointly by the industrial, academic and governmental sectors in the United States in 1990.

The campaign has reportedly generated a surge in the consumption of vegetables and fruits and a reduction in the number of cancer victims.

Some companies, including trading firms and retailers, anticipate the Japanese movement will lead to increased sales of vegetables and fruits.

Presently, about 50 corporations and a number of business organizations are members of the "5 A DAY" Association-Japan, which was established in July 2002.

They are calling on people to eat daily more than five dishes containing at least 350 grams of vegetables and 200 grams of fruits in total.

The average Japanese person`s intake of vegetables per day amounted to about 270 grams, according to a survey conducted in 2003 by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

The volume of vegetables Japanese eat daily has been on the decline as the Japanese diet has become westernized.

Retailers and trading firms involved in the distribution of vegetables feel a sense of crisis over eating habits that put increased emphasis on Western food instead of traditional meals that center on rice.

Hoping sales of vegetables grow in the future, AEON Co., Japan`s major supermarket operator, holds ``learning sessions`` for primary and middle school students at their chain stores to get the children acquainted with vegetables by using games that show their colors and shapes.

The company also takes students on a tour of vegetable growing farms in Hokkaido and Gunma prefectures to give them a chance to talk to farmers and have the experience of harvesting.

It is aggressively carrying out public relations activities targeting homemakers that use dietitians to demonstrate a menu featuring vegetables in season. Its PR department said the company`s consumer-oriented programs have received positive feedback such as a response that said as a result many children had fallen in love with vegetables.

AEON-affiliated restaurant chain Gourmetd`or Co. has started putting nutritional information detailing the amount of vegetables in its dishes at about 250 branches it operates across the country.

It said this effort may accelerate the sale of vegetable dishes once its restaurants establish an image of being an eatery where customers can consume healthy quantities of vegetables.

Major trading firm Itochu Corp. brought a recommended menu option of foods comprised of meat and vegetables to its employee dining hall in mid-November.

The offerings prepared by dietitians include about 200 grams of vegetables, more than half the amount considered necessary for daily intake.

Itochu has also selected 30 employees to eat from the recommended menu as well as eat similar meals for dinner and on their days off on an experimental basis.

The employees will receive a medical checkup after following the diet for a month. It plans to submit the checkup results to the 5 A DAY Association-Japan for use in its activities.

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