It should not come as a surprise that the coronavirus pandemic of 2020 has considerably impacted upon what people around the world have been eating.
In a survey conducted by Macromill on behalf of the Asahi Shimbun (April 4), people were asked if they had stockpiled food and household goods ahead of the self-isolation advisory. Only 12 percent of the 1,784 respondents admitted to upping purchases in reaction to anticipated shortages. The first food item they named was instant noodles, which exceeded purchases of rice, food in retort pouches (such as curry sauce) and bottled water.
Needless to say, noodle producers enjoyed an extremely healthy business quarter. According to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun (May 11), Nissin Shokuhin Holdings, a top producer of instant noodles, reported a 51 percent rise in operating profit over the previous fiscal period, with sales and after-tax profit for the year both projected to increase year on year by 4 percent.