Dairy Policies in Japan

by Kakuyu Obara, John Dyck, and Jim Stout

This report provides a detailed description and analysis of Japan's policies that support its milk producers and regulate dairy markets. Domestic supply controls boost the milk price, and government subsidies for producing manufacturing milk, for environmental improvements, and for hazard insurance provide additional support to farms. Regulations about milk labeling have affected milk powder use. At the border, tariff-rate quotas offer limited opportunities to private firms within the quota amounts, and impose very high tariffs on imports of dairy products outside the quota. If Japan's policies were liberalized, prices and production in Japan would fall, but sizable milk production would remain.

Keywords: Japan, milk, dairy, dairy products, cheese, butter, milk powder, policies, domestic support, trade, trade liberalization, tariff-rate quota, state trading, labeling

In this publication...