Abstract
Local brand marketing is one of the remarkable issues to promote agricultural products for small groups or cooperatives in Japanese rural areas. In this paper the author consider localization in foods, particularly branded beef such as Hida-gyu or Matsusaka-ushi, and discuss on the strategies for revitalization of the rural economy. The quality of beef has been uniformalized in recent Japan, because the regional differences of beef cattle breeds, pedigree, and cattle feed have been almost disappeared. In the first stage of Japanese beef industry, breeding and fattening were separated on the basis of interregional division of labor. Thus, locally branded beef on the market is derived from both indigenous cattle and extraneous cattle. Also, since there is no certification authority for branded beef, consumers cannot appreciate the quality with its appellation. Accordingly, I must state that actors who promote their beef fabricate the local embeddedness. This study makes three feasible suggestions for revitalization of the rural economy that is primarily led by the beef industry. First, amalgamating uncompetitive local beef brands into a single brand can supply enough beef to acquire consumers' awareness. Although the locality in the each beef may lose, expanding producing area can make supermarkets display the trademark of the consolidated brand. Second, product differentiation, for example raising rare breed cattle or providing special feedstuff, can success in market penetration. Third, adding a story to the commodity can stimulate demand. When we eat foods, we do not only consume edible material but we do consume information accompanied by the commodity.
