Overview

• Taku Eto resigned on May 21 after stating he never had to buy rice due to gifts from supporters, a comment seen as insensitive during soaring rice prices.
• Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba accepted Eto's resignation and appointed Shinjiro Koizumi, a former environment minister, to lead the agriculture ministry.
• Rice prices in Japan have doubled over the past year due to poor 2023 harvests, panic buying after a 2024 earthquake warning, and structural supply issues.
• The government has released over 300,000 tons of emergency rice reserves since March, but the measures have failed to significantly lower prices.
• The resignation adds pressure on Ishiba's minority government, already facing public discontent and upcoming elections in July.