This year Japan is expected to welcome more foreign tourists than the country has ever faced, especially with events such as the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics attracting travellers.

However, Japan is a notoriously difficult country for people who are on specific diets, particularly vegans and vegetarians, as the country is relatively behind in regards to embracing vegan and vegetarian food labelling and many food service outlets do not have the menu to cater to these people.

The influx of western tourists will expose the country to veganism, helping increase recognition and understanding of veganism among consumers in Japan.

Mitsue Konishi, senior innovation analyst, GlobalData, commented, “Consumers in Japan following vegan or vegetarian diets are rare. According to GlobalData’s 2019 Q4 global consumer survey, only one percent of people in Japan say they are vegetarian and zero percent is vegan in comparison to the growing popularity worldwide, with two percent of global consumers identifying as vegan, and some countries such as the US (five percent) seeing a continuous rise of vegans.”

However, the tables are turning as many businesses in Japan are noticing that vegan and vegetarian tourism could be a huge opportunity. As a result, the development of vegan products, retailers and food service is being implemented at the fast pace.