Survey Report "Survey on Rice Consumption ~ Changes at the Dining Table Due to Price Surges ~"
Asahi University Marketing Institute released a survey showing the impact of soaring rice prices. While dinner and breakfast habits remain stable, there is a trend of women shifting away from rice for lunch.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: March 31, 2026 at 01:11
- 🔍 Collected: March 30, 2026 at 22:56
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 24, 2026 at 09:31 (586h 35m after Collected)
The Asahi University Marketing Institute (Director: Chihiro Nakahata), an affiliated research institution of Asahi University (Mizuho City, Gifu Prefecture), conducted a survey on rice consumption.
Against the backdrop of labor shortages and high costs, the retail price of rice is soaring. The extent of the price increase is very large, and it is believed that an increasing number of people have taken or are about to take some kind of countermeasures. We conducted this survey to grasp the actual situation of how this currently affects rice consumption behavior and whether the trend of moving away from rice is advancing.
Main Results of "Survey on Rice Consumption ~ Changes at the Dining Table Due to Price Surges ~"
■ For breakfast, past habits continue; few people changed how they eat rice due to the price surge
When asked about changes in how they eat rice for breakfast following the soaring rice prices, the top three responses were: "The staple food remains rice as before," "I don't eat rice for breakfast / I don't eat breakfast," and "My staple food was not originally rice, and the frequency of eating it hasn't changed." All of these items indicate the continuation of conventional habits. Among the items indicating a change, a relatively high percentage of responses showed a shift away from rice, such as "The staple food remains rice, but I have started choosing other ingredients as well" and "My staple food used to be rice, but it has changed to other ingredients."
Breakfast is broadly divided into three types: "Rice faction," "Other ingredients faction," and "Skip breakfast faction," and this situation has continued even after the rice price surge. However, about 20% of people did move away from rice. Although currently a minority, if the price surge is prolonged, the trend points towards an increase in people moving away from rice.
■ For lunch, many people, especially women, chose ingredients other than rice
When asked about changes in how they eat rice for lunch following the soaring rice prices, high percentages were seen for "The staple food remains rice as before" and "My staple food was not originally rice, and the frequency of eating it hasn't changed." Both showed a gender gap; the former was higher among men, and the latter higher among women. Furthermore, many items showed a higher percentage of women compared to men.
Originally, few women chose rice as their staple food for lunch, but after the rice price surge, even more people started choosing ingredients other than rice. The current price surge has become an opportunity that encourages a shift away from rice, primarily in women's lunches.
■ Over 60% continue to choose rice as their staple food for dinner
When asked about changes in how they eat rice for dinner following the soaring rice prices, the response "The staple food remains rice as before" was outstandingly high. About 60% of respondents continue to choose rice as their staple food as before. Compared to breakfast and lunch, the gender difference is small, and for dinner—often eaten together with multiple people—rice continues to play its role as the staple food without change.