The government will ask industry groups to submit data needed for setting safety standards for the product to distribute it in the Japanese market from fiscal 2017 at the earliest, officials said.
Liquid formula can be stored without refrigeration and can be used readily with nipples attached to prefilled bottles.
After Japan received liquid formula from overseas as emergency relief supplies at the time of the March 2011 major earthquake and tsunami that hit the northeastern region, some Japanese started importing the product on a personal basis.
However, liquid formula cannot be produced or sold in Japan due to the absence of safety standards for the product under the Food Sanitation Act.
Liquid formula, which is usually stored without refrigeration, is vulnerable to contamination by germs and has other safety problems that need to be tackled before its introduction in the Japanese market.
In 2009, the Japan Dairy Industry Association asked the health ministry to map out safety standards for liquid formula, but ended up stopping short of submitting necessary data. The group was apparently concerned that consumer demand for liquid formula may be curbed by its high prices compared with powdered formula.
Also, to label liquid formula as a product for babies, manufacturers have to get the permission of the prime minister to sell the product as special-purpose food under the Health Promotion Act.
The government is now moving to speed up its work to make liquid formula available for Japanese consumers, however, as some within the industry group have started to anticipate growing demand for liquid formula in line with the increase of working mothers in the country.
As liquid formula is easy to use compared with powder formula, which needs to be dissolved in hot water before use, it is expected to promote the participation of men in child care.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, who has long advocated the wider use of liquid formula in Japan, told a news conference last week that the metropolitan government may be able to help promote the movement by having nursery schools in Tokyo make bulk purchases of liquid formula to achieve economies of scale.
Soon after major earthquakes damaged Kumamoto Prefecture and surrounding areas in April, Koike, then a member of the House of Representatives, helped send Finnish liquid formula to people affected by the disaster.
Source: JapanTimes
Link: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/10/27/national/steps-afoot-introduce-liquid-baby-formula-japanese-market/#.WBNaSo_hDcc
