Interdisciplinary Studies on the Global Rice Consumption Promotion Strategies

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Interdisciplinary Studies on the Global Rice Consumption Promotion StrategiesThe shrinking demand for rice in the world has been putting an enormous pressure on rice production. This is indeed approaching a critical situation for Asian agriculture. In this research, the current rice situation in each individual Asian country, simulations for rice consumption toward 2050 with 3 scenarios were conducted. The findings in this study are as follows :1. Per capita rice consumption (PCRC) in the world has been declining by 0.6% annually in the 2000s.2. If this situation continues, PCRC would be 58.9kg by 2050.3. If this declining rate doubles or triples, then the PCRC would be as small as 52.7kg or 46.2kg, individually.4. Total global rice consumption would be 535 million tons in 2050 with the smallest assumption of declining rate followed by 479 million tons and 418 million tons with doubled and tripled declining rates, respectively.5. The IRRI (2003) estimated for 2025, and this is 7% greater than the most conservative estimate in this research. An overestimate by the IRRI might be a possibility.6. Very few researches on rice consumption are done in the most Asian countries, and it is important to enhance researches in this area.7. The declining rice consumption eventually force domestic production of rice in individual Asian nations, and the Asian agriculture which depends on rice heavily may get deteriorated and lose competitiveness against the agriculture in Non-Asian areas. This may also delay improvement of poverty in the Asian rural areas.8. Japanese government should take the initiative and encourage other Asian nations to develop researches on rice consumption and food education using the ODA fund.