Thailand’s Trade Policy and Strategy Office (TPSO) has urged Thai food operators to leverage Japan’s ambitious multi-trillion-yen investment plan to upgrade the kingdom's alternative protein and functional food sectors, aiming to shift from raw material exporter to high-value ingredient producer.
TPSO Director General Nantapong Chiralerspong revealed that Japan’s government recently unveiled a draft public-private investment roadmap, targeting over 370 trillion yen (about 81.3 trillion baht) by 2040 across 17 strategic sectors, positioning ‘New Foods’ and food technology alongside AI, semiconductors and clean energy.
As part of the initiative, Tokyo plans to allocate 1 trillion yen to expand its alternative protein and functional food market, from 315 billion yen to 3 trillion yen by 2040.
Rather than focusing heavily on high-risk cultivated meats, Japan's strategy prioritises its core strengths in fermentation technology, functional nutrition and proprietary food formulation, with initial export targets already set for the US, Europe and Asia.
Nantapong added that the Japanese government also intends to introduce a ‘Strong and Prosperous Japan’ budgetary framework with no funding caps, providing sustained long-term capital for strategic food innovations without requiring annual re-approvals.
Nantapong noted that Japan’s aggressive expansion opens a major window for Thai businesses to collaborate on technology transfer, applying Thailand’s agricultural biodiversity to develop functional ingredients and value-added food products.
Japan remains Thailand’s third-largest export market for agricultural and agro-industrial products, with trade valued at $5.08 billion (166.7 billion baht) in 2025.
Key exports include processed chicken, frozen poultry, canned seafood and rubber products.
By integrating into Japan's evolving supply chain, Thai producers can overcome regional trade headwinds and secure a higher-value position in the global food economy, according to the TPSO.
