This analysis by the Agriculture & Livestock Industries Corporation Survey Information Department, published in August 2025, is the second installment of the Reiwa 6 survey results on procurement trends of sweeteners and starch, providing detailed analysis of starch utilization patterns by food manufacturers.
Survey Overview and Response Status
The survey was conducted from December Reiwa 6 to February Reiwa 7, sending questionnaires to 370 starch-using food manufacturing companies and receiving responses from 97 companies (26.2% response rate). By industry, "confectionery and bread" companies led with 35 responses (36%), followed by "livestock and marine food products" with 23 responses (24%), and "seasonings, sugars, and oils" with 11 responses (11%). The target starches included natural starches (potato, sweet potato, corn starch, tapioca) and modified starches (dextrin, processed starch, physically treated starch).
Usage Applications and Reasons
For natural starches, "confectionery and frozen desserts" led with 40 cases, followed by "marine processed products, ham, and sausages" with 19 cases, and "frozen foods" with 14 cases. Modified starches also showed "confectionery and frozen desserts" as predominant with 25 cases, followed by "seasonings and seasoned foods" with 9 cases, and "dairy products" with 8 cases. Regarding usage reasons, "texture enhancement" was most common for both natural and modified starches (61 cases for natural, 47 for modified), followed by "thickening and viscosity adjustment" (25 cases for natural, 29 for modified).
Natural Starch Procurement Trends
Reiwa 6 procurement volumes showed a notable declining trend compared to the previous year, with potato starch showing 22% increases versus 46% decreases, and sweet potato starch showing 30% increases versus 40% decreases. "Inability to receive necessary supply volumes" was frequently cited as the reason for decreases, highlighting serious domestic starch supply shortages. Only tapioca starch showed an increasing trend (53% increases, 35% decreases), with reasons including "new product development" and "switching from other starches."
Future projections showed "flat" as the most common response for most varieties, though domestic starches (potato, sweet potato) had decrease projections reaching 20-30%, indicating continued supply anxiety.
Price Trends and Satisfaction Levels
As of October Reiwa 6, procurement prices per kg for potato starch were "200-240 yen" and "240 yen or more" at 28% each, and for sweet potato starch "120-160 yen" and "240 yen or more" at 25% each, showing a shift toward higher price ranges. Year-over-year comparisons showed continued price increases overall, with domestic starches particularly showing increases in the "240 yen or more" high-price range.
Raw material procurement satisfaction surveys revealed serious dissatisfaction with domestic starches, with sweet potato starch showing combined "somewhat dissatisfied" and "dissatisfied" responses reaching 55%, and potato starch reaching 46%. "Supply volume decreases and price increases" accounted for the majority of reasons.
Domestic Starch Supply Challenges
Reiwa 6 domestic potato starch supply volume is expected to remain at approximately 157,000 tons, similar to the previous year. In Hokkaido, while the transition to potato cyst nematode-resistant varieties has been completed, production remains unstable due to climate change impacts. Sweet potato starch supply was limited to 10,000 tons due to competition with other uses, despite reduced occurrence of sweet potato root rot disease in Kagoshima Prefecture.
The article concludes that domestic starch possesses irreplaceable characteristics such as unique texture enhancement, creating high expectations for joint public-private efforts in resistant variety development, disease countermeasures, and production increase initiatives. The corporation aims to contribute to stable starch supply through price adjustment operations and information dissemination.