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July 06, 2025
 

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CHOCOLATE

A farmer cuts down cocoa pods from a tree on his farm in Azaguie, Cote d'Ivoire.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 17, 2025
High cocoa prices drive smuggling surge, alarming traders
Cote d'Ivoire is the world's largest cocoa producer, but much higher prices in neighboring countries create an arbitrage that some can't resist exploiting.
Farmer Moises Schmidt shows a cocoa bean at the Schmidt Agricola plantation in Riachao das Neves, Bahia state, Brazil, on Nov. 19, 2024.
BUSINESS
Apr 29, 2025
Brazil's would-be cocoa king aims to revolutionize industry with giant farm
The farmer's $300 million plan is the largest and the most innovative in the Brazilian state of Bahia, but not the only one.
A farmhand prunes trees on a 4-year-old cocoa plantation, replanted after swollen shoot disease, in Enchi, Ghana, on March 4.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Apr 23, 2025
Cocoa crunch isn’t over yet as top growers struggle with supply
Africa’s cocoa heartland has long grappled with blight and aging trees, leaving farms vulnerable as severe weather hammered crops in recent years.
While Valentine’s Day in the West is traditionally associated with men giving flowers to women, in Japan the day has typically involved women giving gifts of chocolate to men.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 14, 2025
A sweet Japanese Valentine's Day tradition is nearly dead
The custom of giri-choco, loosely meaning "obligatory chocolate,” was once commonplace in offices around the country.
Giving out courtesy chocolates to coworkers on Valentine's Day is becoming obsolete.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 10, 2025
How giving chocolates on Valentine’s Day is evolving in Japan
One change is fewer people are handing out chocolates to others at work, which had been a widespread practice over the past few decades.
Takashimaya is doubling its range of baked goods with chocolate for Valentine's Day, with treats on offer including madeleines.
BUSINESS
Jan 22, 2025
Japan's department stores look to unorthodox Valentine's Day treats
According to a pastry shop owner, the total costs for chocolate products, including those for packing materials, "have doubled."
Cocoa beans are pictured next to a warehouse at the village of Atroni, near Sunyani, Ghana, on April 11, 2019.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 25, 2024
How a hedge fund exodus reshaped global cocoa markets 
The impact of hedge funds' exit illustrates how reliant trading has become on these lightly regulated funds that increasingly shape financial markets.
An employee holds a chocolate bar at Chocovi, in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire, on May 10.
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 9, 2024
Could dark chocolate reduce your risk of diabetes?
While a new study links the food to a possible reduced risk, one researcher cautions that it is not a "magic bullet."
Cafe N°_5's take on the Dubai chocolate craze that has been circulating on social media over the past few months is a mix of bitter and sweet.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 28, 2024
Tokyo’s take on that viral chocolate from Dubai
Scarce and pricey, Dubai chocolate is winning over Japanese fans thanks to a few flavor modifications.
Official Kinoko no Yama earphones by Meiji (right) next to a counterfeit product
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 25, 2024
Meiji blocks import of counterfeit Kinoko no Yama earphones
The original mushroom-shaped wireless earphones, a quirky iteration of the famous sweet treat, debuted in March on a limited run and quickly sold out.
Ebenezer Agyarko tends to his cocoa plantation in Kwabeng, north of Accra, the capital of Ghana.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 22, 2024
Chocolate prices unlikely to decline even as African cocoa harvest improves
Issues that have long hobbled the industry remain, meaning bean prices aren’t likely to fall back to previous levels.
Futures of robusta coffee beans have hit their highest price in over 40 years, while cocoa prices have more than doubled this year.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 9, 2024
Cocoa’s dizzying volatility is spilling into the coffee market
Many major traders deal in both commodities, so soaring cocoa prices are squeezing market players for cash and forcing them out of coffee trading.
Customers look at chocolate bars at Cacao Store, a specialist chocolate store, in Tokyo. Japan is a large market for high-value confectionery and it sources about 75% of its cocoa imports from Ghana.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 30, 2024
Chocoholics in Japan set for sticker shock after cocoa price surge
Crop declines in top suppliers Ivory Coast and Ghana leave buyers struggling for beans and prices more than doubling since the start of the year.
Japanese chocolatier Yasushi Sasaki holds a box of chocolates in his workshop in the Brussels commune of Woluwe-Saint-Pierre.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Mar 27, 2024
A Japanese 'flavor wizard' conquers the homeland of chocolate
Yasushi Sasaki has been named Brussels' chocolatier of the year by the prestigious Gault & Millau food guide.
A farmers open cocoa pods in Cote d’Ivoire in October 2018. Many West African farmers make just enough to subsist, with most lacking the means to re-invest in their small plots.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 13, 2024
The meltdown in chocolate is coming as prices signal supply shortages
It’s worth remembering that cocoa beans traded a year ago for $2,500 and that in 2000 they changed hands at just $650.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 8, 2024
Japan’s Valentine’s Day chocolate budget sees 34% rise
About 22% of survey participants said they would purchase chocolates for themselves — 3.4 times more than those buying for a romantic partner.
Seiste's ¥1,650 limited-edition ice cream will be available for eat-in customers throughout the Valentine's Day period at the Matsuya department store in Tokyo's Ginza district.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 25, 2024
Tokyo department stores to offer in-store dining options for Valentine's Day
In recent years, the Feb. 14 celebration has evolved from a day of gifting sweets to a celebration of love for chocolate.
A farmer at his cocoa farm in Gabeadji near San Pedro, Cote d'Ivoire, in January
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 1, 2023
Chocolate could get even pricier if Africa’s cocoa crop flops
Cocoa prices have soared on fears that bad weather and crop disease will hurt output in Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana, which make up two-thirds of world supply.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 10, 2021
Episode 81: Chocolate in Japan — from Paris to the Ogasawara Islands
As Valentine's Day approaches, Jeana Cadby, Ph.D. in specialty cacao and craft chocolate, takes us on a tour through the history and growth of chocolate in Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / DESSERT WATCH
Feb 6, 2021
On the hunt for chocolate cake? Surprisingly, Sushiro has you covered.
With its new double-chocolate cake, the famous sushi chain is the Valentine's Day destination we didn't know we needed.
Japan braces for more quakes as authorities dismiss doomsday hype
Evacuees from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecuture, arrive at Kagoshima Port on Friday.
Hidden AI prompts in academic papers spark concern about research integrity
Waseda University is one of 14 institutions in eight countries found to have used hidden prompts in research papers.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
U.S. military apologizes over Okinawa sexual assault case
Col. Neil Owens (right), chief of staff for the 3rd Marine Division, bows in apology at the Okinawa Prefectural Government office in Naha on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Muji has been sustainable from the beginning
Muji has been sustainable from the beginning

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