Japan's Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Koizumi Shinjiro, announced on May 27 that the procurement of government rice reserves has reached 98,000 tons, reflecting a strong response to the crisis of rising rice prices.

Since taking office on May 21, Koizumi has utilized 'discretionary contracts' to release government rice reserves and announced on the evening of the 27th that the sales limit has been reached, leading to a temporary halt of new applications. According to reports, by the morning of the 27th, 19 businesses had submitted applications for a total of 98,000 tons; by 2 PM the same day, procurement quantities surged to 157,073 tons, with a total of 33 participating businesses, including major e-commerce players and retail chains.

On social media, Koizumi stated, 'This afternoon, a large influx of orders came in, suggesting that all orders from last year have been sold out. The next orders will come from the 2021 harvest, limited to 100,000 tons. We will suspend new applications and reopen them after confirming the buyers’ intentions.'

This surge in requests is part of the ongoing 'Reiwa rice chaos' which has seen retail rice prices double compared to last year. Former Minister of Agriculture, Eito Takashi, resigned after controversial remarks made during a public event, and Koizumi stepped in, pledging to stabilize rice prices with a benchmark price of 2,000 yen (about 416 TWD) for government rice. His proactive measures have been well-received, emphasizing the government's efforts to navigate this urgent situation.