Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba called for a probe to identify the reasons for soaring rice prices and examine the government's response at the first ministerial meeting on stable rice supply on Thursday.
Urging agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi to launch the probe, Ishiba requested that his government also consider short-term and medium- to long-term measures to tackle the rising prices.
A key issue in future discussions at the ministerial council will be how to optimize rice distribution. Another point is whether members will decide radical reform to agricultural policies, including a change to the rice production adjustments still in place even after the government scrapped its policy on rice paddy acreage cuts, or gentan.
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