Japan’s Agriculture Minister Resigns Over Controversial Rice Comment

Japanese Agriculture Minister Taku Eto has resigned following public backlash over insensitive remarks about rice prices, Gabriele Ninivaggi reported for Japan Times.

Eto's comments sparked widespread outrage amid record-high rice prices and growing dissatisfaction with the ruling party. I Photo: 農林水産省 X

“I wasn’t able to understand the feelings of the people,” Eto told reporters after stepping down, apologizing for comments made in which he joked about never needing to buy rice because he received so much from supporters that he could sell it.

The statement, made during a Liberal Democratic Party meeting in Saga Prefecture, sparked widespread outrage amid record-high rice prices and growing dissatisfaction with the ruling party.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba initially resisted calls for Eto’s resignation, but pressure mounted after five major opposition parties, including the Constitutional Democratic Party and Nippon Ishin no Kai, signaled plans to file a no-confidence motion in the Lower House.

Although such a motion would have had no binding legal effect, it threatened to deepen political turmoil ahead of a key Upper House election this summer. Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi is expected to be appointed as Eto’s replacement.