{"ok":true,"trend":{"id":367441,"platform":"mastodon","region":"global","key":"from a rice shortage, japan has now veered into a glut, putting pressure on prices and adding to the insurmountable prob","title":"From a rice shortage, Japan has now veered into a glut, putting pressure on prices and adding to the insurmountable prob","url":"https://mastodon.social/@thejapantimes/117354414814823810","first_seen":"2026-09-29T14:20:50.418058Z","last_seen":"2026-09-29T14:20:50.418058Z","last_rank":6,"peak_rank":6,"last_volume":4,"peak_volume":4,"seen_count":1,"score":0.9915625,"category_hint":"food","section":"life","category":"food","summary":"Japan has swung from a rice shortage to a surplus, with the glut now pushing prices down and compounding difficulties for growers in an already contracting farm sector. The rapid reversal follows recent years of tight supply and high prices, and farmers say shrinking demand and ageing producers leave them little room to absorb another market shock.","why":"Rice prices and the plight of Japan's farming sector are a live economic and political concern after recent shortage-driven price spikes.","tone":"negative","entities":["Japan","Japanese rice farmers","The Japan Times"],"summarized_at":"2026-09-29T14:21:59.040206Z","meta":{"tag":"food","via":"scan","kind":"status","lang":"en","instance":"mastodon.social","tag_uses":319},"nw":null,"promo":null,"kind":null,"importance":null,"hidden":false,"hide_reason":null,"judged_at":null,"title_en":"Japan swings from rice shortage to glut, squeezing farmers","section_name":"Life","category_name":"Food","timeline":[{"captured_at":"2026-09-29T14:20:50.418058Z","rank":6,"volume":4}],"posts":[{"platform":"mastodon","url":"https://mastodon.social/@thejapantimes/117354414814823810","author":"thejapantimes","title":null,"snippet":"From a rice shortage, Japan has now veered into a glut, putting pressure on prices and adding to the insurmountable problems faced by farmers in an already-shrinking sector. https://www. japantimes.co.jp/news/2026/09/…","posted_at":"2026-09-29T12:51:01.213000Z","likes":4}],"elsewhere":[],"window":"7d"}}