When the price of a bowl of ramen goes up in Japan, people take notice. Rising costs for the wheat that makes the noodles, and the energy that keeps the soup bubbling, have started to appear at the register. When even this most Japanese of meals comes under pressure from larger economic forces, the world food market can be seen as completely, and precariously, internationalized.
In addition to wheat and fuel, the price of soybeans that make up miso, one of the special flavors for ramen, is also going up. Add on an upswing in cooking oil prices, and the basic bill for ramen will cause a lot more coins to be dragged out of pockets if Japanese are going to keep slurping their favorite noodles.
The rise in prices strongly reminds Japanese, right in their gut, that 90 percent of wheat is imported. Soaring grain prices mean that the wheat, flour, noodle and ramen chain of production is likely to come under pressure, and soon. As the largest importer of wheat in Asia, with some of the highest transportation costs, government ministries and food importers must start reconsidering the past system of imports. Most ramen makers are considering it every morning.