Japan, the world's biggest corn importer, is set to increase floor prices for domestic meat for a second time this year and boost subsidies to livestock farmers after prices of the grain soared to a record.
The floor price for locally produced pork would rise 5.3 percent to ¥400 a kilogram in July from ¥380. The base price for beef would climb 3.2 percent to ¥815 from ¥790, the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry proposed Thursday at a panel meeting.
The ministry, which normally reviews the prices once a year, raised the floor levels in April for the first time in about three decades. Corn rose to an all-time high of $7.2175 a bushel Thursday as rain in the U.S. Midwest cut the forecast for output. The increase in Japan's floor prices in April was the first for pork in 31 years and the first for beef in 27 years.