It may be the recent food-related scandals, or it may just be the latest manifestation of Japan's fascination with the culinary arts, but more and more people are seeking accreditation as experts on specific kinds of food.
According to the people who grant such accreditation, companies are beginning to capitalize on the expertise of these "meisters," as they are called, to promote sales and help with sanitary control.
It makes sense. Food firms need to reach out to consumers turned off by such developments as the false labeling of products and fraud involving altered use-by dates.