The Least Useful Guide to Fukuoka

Today when  I shopped at a local baking ingredients store(I ‘m not sure what this kind of store is called in English—a store selling a variety of flour, sugar, and everything you need when you make breads, cakes, and other confectioneries  at home, regardless of it is western or Japanese), I was told there has been a great shortage of butter.

I didn’t realise that. I was even about to forget there was milk and yogurt shortage after the 311. According to the lady behind the counter, in some areas milk was still thrown away due to the fear of the “R” contamination and milk and yogurt supply for ordinary consumer was prioritised to butter. I was also told every patissier was struggling to produce cakes with less butter or using butter-margarine mix.

 I was surprised to hear that: no milk carton carried the result of their R-stuff testing, which,  I believed, meant every milk company was selling milk without testing the products—they were not as bad people as I assumed!! And I worked out why yogurts were sold at discounted price, but never butter.

 Although the government is reported to have decided an urgent import of 2,000 tons of butter, I guess the things would be the same as what we saw in March—everyone innocently gets one more carton—just in case. And these “just-in-case” cartons would make the shelves empty in a flash.  You see, if a hundred of million Japanese want to secure a 2oo-gram carton of butter, we at least more than 20, 000 tons (if my calculation is right ).

For this winter, you might have to be prepared for having non-fat, or 100% trans-fat Christmas cakes, if you stayed in Japan.