Regarding Michael Hoffman's Nov. 25 article, "Taste buds of children destroyed by junk food" (a translation of a Sapio article): It's not just food additives that are destroying taste buds; Japan has a depressing lack of good produce available in stores.
I just came back to Los Angeles from my first visit to Japan. What a disappointment to find that all the fruit in stores (from low to high end) was high-priced and perfect-looking but had very little flavor. I saw beautiful persimmon trees all over the countryside, yet almost all the persimmons in the stores were flavorless. Apples, pears and tangerines were just as bad.
At the farmers markets in L.A., one can find produce that doesn't look as perfect as in Japan, but tastes much better and costs a lot less. There are a lot of negative things that can be said about the United States in general and Los Angeles in particular, but what a shock to discover how much better the produce is here! Given the dearth of good fresh fruit, it's no wonder Japanese people prefer artificial flavors.
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