Consumption In Asia Research Articles

Advancing Sustainable Consumption in Korea and Japan—From Re-Orientation of Consumer Behavior to Civic Actions

With sustainability being one of the most common issues facing consumers and society today, this paper explores the status of sustainable consumption in Korea and Japan—societies expected to drive the changes pertaining to sustainable consumption in Asia. Although Korea and Japan have been implementing sustainability-related policies, there is still room for development of sustainability in terms of consumers’ participation. As sustainable consumption is defined as consumers’ environmental decision-making process, which requires cognitive efforts, it is necessary to understand individual’s sustainable consumption based on the conceptual model of behavior, in order to encourage the adoption of more sustainable consumer practices. Being grounded in the revised Theory of Reasoned Action, which adds consumers’ awareness, pro-environmental self-identity, and descriptive norm, this study contributes to a better empirical understanding of the factors that underlie sustainable consumption behaviors with respect to social-cognitive viewpoint. By involving a survey of Korean and Japanese respondents’ awareness, descriptive norm, practical behavior to 47 specific activities, as well as attitude and pro-environmental self-identity, the study works on two levels: on one level, it is a study of sustainability-related consumer activities and behaviors in Korea and Japan; on another level, it identifies key variables to explain sustainable consumption behavior through hierarchical regression analysis. The results show that among the numerous sectors requiring prioritized expansion of sustainable consumption, the area of consumer citizenship has received relatively little publicity. Another important finding is that the failure to practically engage in sustainability-related activities by consumers cannot simply be attributed to knowledge deficit, as consumers in both countries appropriately recognize sustainable consumption. Our results clearly illustrate that consumers perform sustainable consumption behavior based mostly on socially shared connotations—the descriptive norm—while the other key variables affecting sustainable consumption are awareness, and pro-environmental self-identity. However, we also observed that there is no significant effect on attitude, indicating that even a favorable attitude toward performing sustainability-related activities does not directly translate into actual behavior. This paper shows how consumer perceptions of the normality of environmentally friendly behaviors can be used for the design of strategies to promote sustainable consumption in Korean and Japanese societies. In addition, we provide practical guidelines for the expansion of sustainable consumption tailored for the characteristics of each society.

Environmental Sustainability of Food Consumption in Asia

This study assesses the environmental sustainability of food consumption in Thailand, India, China, Japan, and Saudi Arabia by using a life cycle assessment. These five Asian countries were selected according to the differences in surface area, population density, GDP, and food consumption patterns. The data were obtained from Food and Agriculture Organization food balance sheets, Ecoinvent 3.4 and Agri-footprint 4.0 databases, and scientific publications. The environmental impact categories chosen were global warming, terrestrial acidification, eutrophication, eco-toxicity, human toxicity, and fossil resource scarcity. The impact assessment was carried out by using the ReCiPe2006 v1.1 method. Based on the analysis, the highest environmental impacts for all categories (except eutrophication) were from the food consumption in China, followed by the consumption in Japan, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and India. The major contributors to these impacts were meat, cereals, animal products, and alcoholic beverages. Meat was the highest contributor in all countries except India, because of low meat consumption in India. A calorie intake analysis was also conducted, which showed reductions in environmental impacts by shifting towards calorie-adequate and non-environmentally intensive diets in Thailand, China, Japan, and Saudi Arabia. Therefore, a reduction in the consumption of meat, cereals, animal products, and alcoholic beverages could therefore enhance the environmental sustainability of food consumption.

The future of Indian foreign policy towards ASEAN: dependability and alternatives

India has one of the largest and fastest growing economies in the world. It is second only to China in growth. Its growth rate for 2010 was 8.3%. After rapid economic expansion since 1990, it has become the third largest economy after China and Japan, The important future strategic role in the Asian region. A future study by Deutsche Bank on the development of the Indian economy and its future prospects is expected to witness a number of developments, the most important of which is the increase in the average gross domestic product (GDP) to (6%) for the period (2006-2020) As well as the expansion of the industrial sector, especially on the basis of information technology. With economic and demographic growth, the need for energy and services increases, making them the most energy-efficient countries at a rate of two and a half times the rate of the superpowers. Therefore, they are responsible for 20% of energy consumption in Asia in 2030 compared with 12% in 2004 to sustain its economic growth. The basic condition for the prospect of economic power is to recognize the national development milestones that have changed their economic reality and open up their potential more than ever before - the rapid rise in learning levels and high rates of technological innovation

The Transformation of Asian Food Consumption and Russia as a Guarantor of Food Security in Asia

This article examines the state of the global food problem, food security in East Asia, and the opportunity for Russia to prevent a food deficit in North Korea. The authors analyze the symptoms of the global food problem, the theoretical approaches to food security, the transformation of food consumption in Asia, and the food trade between Russia and the Korean Peninsula. One major conclusion is that Russia is in the best position among all countries to increase food exports to Asia―and especially to North Korea―as the people of Asia’s food consumption habits shape the new structure of food trade between that region and the rest of the world.

Wheat Production and Consumption Dynamics in an Asian Rice Economy: The Bangladesh Case

Wheat consumption in Asia’s major rice economies has been increasing over the decades. Bangladesh is no exception, despite being the world’s fourth largest rice-producing and the largest rice-consuming country. In Bangladesh, wheat consumption has doubled from 1961 to 2013, and now stands at 17.5 kg per capita, about a ninth of the rice consumption. Densely populated Bangladesh has achieved rice self-sufficiency, but relies on imports to top up modest domestic wheat production. This study assesses the prospects for Bangladesh to expand its wheat production. The rice–wheat production system offers good prospects to expand wheat production in Bangladesh and respond to increasing domestic demand. Based on the findings, this study urges the expansion of wheat production in the seasonally fallow land, particularly in southern Bangladesh. Also, this study calls for further investments in wheat research and development to ensure local adaptation, comparative advantage, and sustainable intensification.

Sources and burial fluxes of soot black carbon in sediments on the Mackenzie, Chukchi, and Bering Shelves

Black carbon (BC) has been recognized as a climate forcing and a major component in the global carbon budget. However, studies on BC in the Arctic Ocean remain scarce. We report here variations in the abundance, sources and burial fluxes of sedimentary soot black carbon (soot-BC) in the western Arctic Ocean. The soot-BC contents averaged 1.6 ± 0.3, 0.46 ± 0.04 and 0.56 ± 0.10 mg-C g−1 on the Mackenzie, Chukchi and Bering Shelves, respectively, accounting for 16.6%, 10.2% and 10.4% of the total organic carbon in surface sediment. Temporally, contents of soot-BC remained fairly stable before 1910, but increased rapidly after the 1970s on the Mackenzie Shelf, indicating enhanced source input related to warming. Comparable δ13C signatures of soot-BC (− 24.95‰ to − 24.57‰) to C3 plants pointed to a major biomass source of soot-BC to the Beaufort Sea. Soot-BC showed similar temporal patterns with large fluctuations in the Chukchi/Bering shelf regions, implying the same source terms for soot-BC in these areas. Two events with elevated soot-BC corresponded to a simultaneous increase in biomass combustion and fossil fuel (coal and oil) consumption in Asia. The similar temporal variability in sedimentary soot-BC between the Arctic shelves and Asian lakes and the comparable δ13C values manifested that anthropogenic emission from East Asia was an important source of soot-BC in the western Arctic and subarctic regions. The burial fluxes of soot-BC, estimated from both 137Cs- and 210Pb-derived sedimentation rates, were 2.43 ± 0.42 g-C m−2 yr−1 on the Mackenzie Shelf, representing an efficient soot-BC sink. Soot-BC showed an increase in buried fluxes from 0.56 ± 0.02 g-C m−2 yr−1 during 1963–1986 to 0.88 ± 0.05 g-C m−2 yr−1 after 1986 on the Chukchi Shelf, and from 1.00 ± 0.18 g-C m−2 yr−1 to 2.58 ± 1.70 g-C m−2 yr−1 on the Bering Shelf, which were consistent with recent anthropogenically enhanced BC input observed especially in Asia. Overall, the three Arctic shelves could bury more than 3000 Gg soot-BC each year, attesting to an important role of the Arctic and subarctic shelves in global BC budget and carbon cycle.

Footwear Design Crowdsourcing Platform Model For Strengthening Of the Competitiveness Of The Footwear Industry

The volumes of global footwear production and consumption have been steadily increasing. In particular, the income increases of China and Southeast Asian countries have led to the rapid growth of footwear production and consumption in Asia. However, while advanced countries still include footwear business as one of their growth engines, Korea regard it as stagnant or diminishing. However, beyond the category of simple manufacturing, footwear industry involves the integration of highly functional products, parts manufacturing, and marketing business, and includes expertise in the fields of design, materials, and epidemiology. The strengthening of the shoe industry is an important potential driver of the overall economy. The strengthened competiveness of the footwear industry will play an important role in the overall economic growth. Crowdsourcing is an approach that encourages the participation of specific communities or unspecified masses in a company’s production, service, or problem-solving processes to increase efficiency. To this end, this paper suggests the crowdsourcing platform model built through the integration of footwear design and IT for the ultimate enhancement of the competitiveness of the Korean footwear industry. Following this paper, a study about the practical development, application, and active use of such platform needs to be conducted. One limitation of this study is that the platform is yet to be developed or applied. Future research should focus on developing an actual platform and further studies in its application and vitalization.

Income and Energy Consumption in Asia A Panel Cointegration Analysis with Common Factors

The research presented in this paper studies the relationship between energy consumption and income for a panel of Asian economies. The Asian economies represent a dynamic, diverse, and interesting set of countries on which to base an examination of these relationships and the tendencies for these economies to be on a path of convergence and integration in their energy consumption and use characteristics. We start with an overview of the evolution of energy intensities for the individual countries in our study. Panel data methodologies are then employed to gain the advantage of increased explanatory power of the econometric analysis results from pooling time series and cross-section observations. In addition, our panel cointegration analyses incorporate common factors as a means of accounting for variables beyond the bivariate relationship between income and total final energy consumption. The results find support for the flow of causality running from income to energy consumption, albeit with feedback. The results are consistent with and supportive of the findings of the seminal paper by Kraft and Kraft (1978). In addition, the long-run income elasticity estimates for the panel find that the estimates are very sensitive to the inclusion or exclusion of common factors.

Consumption in Asia

This paper examines consumption patterns in Asia. The majority of Asian countries, in particular, those located in East Asia, such as China, are characterized by high GDP shares of consumption. While over the past two decades there has been a remarkable growth in consumption, and to a lesser extent of consumption per capita, the GDP share of consumption has declined by a considerable amount in Asia. The paper presents projections of the GDP consumption share. The projections are based on time series models and an econometric model that relates the GDP share of consumption to PPP GDP per capita growth. Instrumental variables estimates show that the GDP share of consumption is significantly negatively related to growth: a decrease in PPP GDP per capita growth of 1 percentage point per annum increases the GDP share of consumption by around 2 percentage points. Slower growth in Asia would thus significantly contribute to a higher GDP share of consumption in that region.

Evaluation of Genetic Diversity of Proso Millet Germplasm Available in the United States using Simple‐Sequence Repeat Markers

Proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) is the best rotational crop in most dryland production areas in the semiarid US High Plains because of the highest water use efficiency among all cereal crops and short growing season. In the United States, it is used for birdseed, but it is used mostly for human consumption in Asia and Europe. Genomic resources and genetic research of this crop are limited. There is no report of molecular marker‐based genetic diversity analysis of the US germplasm, which is important for its genetic improvement. The objective of this study was to evaluate genetic diversity of US proso millet germplasm based on DNA markers. A set of 90 proso millet genotypes (landraces and cultivars) and 100 simple‐sequence repeat (SSR) markers were used. Cluster analysis was based on unweighed pair‐group method with arithmetic average (UPGMA) and principal component analysis (PCA) using NTSYSpc software. A total of 1287 alleles with size range from 40 to 1500 bp were amplified by the 100 SSR markers. The US proso millet germplasm used in this report is highly genetically diverse. The genotypes formed one major and two minor groups, which correspond to their geographic origin, pedigree, and morphoagronomic traits with few exceptions. All the cultivars developed in the United States remained together in a subcluster within Group 2. Many of these SSR markers with high resolving power were very informative and could be useful for further genetic diversity studies of proso millet. This study would have significant implications for future proso millet genetic improvement.

Does religion influence consumers’ green food consumption? Some insights from Malaysia

Purpose– This paper aims to examine whether Muslim and non-Muslim consumers give different importance to green food consumption.Design/methodology/approach– Data were analysed using means comparison and multiple discriminant analysis across a sample of 700 students in a public higher learning institution in the Federal Territory of Labuan, Malaysia, using the convenience sampling technique.Findings– Empirical results via multiple discriminant analysis discovered that imperative aspects such as specific needs, personal environmental values related to green food and governmental efforts strongly predict discrimination towards green food consumption among the non-Muslim consumers. Muslim consumers follow a strict diet that complies with religious dietary laws.Practical implications– Understanding Muslim and non-Muslim consumers’ awareness of and intentions towards green food consumption is very important for any manager in the food industry or food market, as it is critical that the food they produce is safe, environmental and healthy. It is understood that Muslim consumers are very particular about food intake, as they can only consume food that complies with religious dietary laws.Originality/value– The results of this study presented vital insights and enhanced the understanding of the role of religion and its influence on green food consumption in Asia.

AACCI Approved Methods Technical Committee Report on the Guidelines for Laboratory Preparation of Japanese Udon Noodles (AACCI Approved Method 66-60.01)

Asian noodles are widely recognized as an important wheat product, making up an average of 20–50% of total wheat flour consumption in Asia. Whether a study is focused on varietal selection in breeding, components of raw materials, formulation, ingredient application, process control, new product development, or other research issues, each line of the investigation requires valid, reliable, and small-scale laboratory testing methods. The diversity of Asian noodle varieties and regional differences in processing equipment have meant no internationally approved standard methods or guidelines have previously been developed and approved for noodle evaluation. However, some countries have developed official methods for their specific noodle products. One example is the Japanese udon noodle preparation method approved by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries–National Food Research Institute of Japan. This method has been in use for nearly 30 years (with slight modifications and improvements) and ha...

Did the tobacco industry inflate estimates of illicit cigarette consumption in Asia? An empirical analysis

ObjectiveEstimates of illicit cigarette consumption are limited and the data obtained from studies funded by the tobacco industry have a tendency to inflate them. This study aimed to validate an...

Current initiatives in One Health: consolidating the One Health Global Network

The Global Response to Avian Influenza has led to a longer-term One Health movement, which addresses risks, including zoonoses, at the human-animal- environment interface, and requires the development of innovative partnerships at the political, institutional and technical levels. One Health is a sustainable and rational option when the cumulative effects of health hazards on food and economic security are considered, but demands long-term financial investment. Projections of growth in the demand for livestock production and consumption in Asia and Africa also call for effective One Health responses. However, an effective response also requires validated evidence of the socio-economic value that the One Health approach can provide. Implementing the One Health approach depends on forging strong links between human and animal health services, the environment and public policy. The authors present a list of some of the national and transnational partnerships established since 2006. Political support, good governance and effective policies and networks are crucial building blocks for One Health sustainability. The Global Response to Avian Influenza was initially established under the joint leadership of the European Union, the United States and the United Nations System Influenza Coordination Office. Since then it has supported numerous initiatives, including the World Health Organization (WHO)/Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)/World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) Global Early Warning System (GLEWS). Indeed, the Global Response to Avian Influenza paved the way for an unprecedented WHO/FAO/OIE tripartite partnership, which promoted the integration of foodborne, neglected zoonotic and tropical diseases within the One Health movement and led to the tripartite High-Level Technical Meeting of 2011 in Mexico. The One Health Global Network, which began as a proposition at an Expert Consultation in Winnipeg, Canada, in 2009, is now a reality. While its Global Guidance Group takes shape, the choice of soft-governance--an approach which relies more on information and advisory guidelines than on hierarchy and legislation, and which aims to steer local organisations rather than to control them--remains challenging. Nonetheless, the emergence of One Health as a professional and academic discipline, together with the growing references to a One Health culture, also offers new opportunities.

Exploring the Soyfood Controversy

In Brief Despite their proposed health benefits and long history of consumption in Asia, soyfoods have become controversial. In recent years, the benefits of soy have been challenged, and concerns have been raised about possible adverse effects of soy consumption. Underlying most of the benefits and concerns is the presence of isoflavones (phytoestrogens) in soybeans. The evidence reviewed in this article indicates that soy consumption reduces risk of coronary heart disease and, if consumed early in life, potentially breast cancer. Concerns that soyfoods may be contraindicated for breast cancer patients and women at high risk of developing this disease are not supported by the clinical and epidemiologic evidence. The clinical evidence also does not support the notion that isoflavones or soyfoods feminize men. However, some question remains as to their effects in subclinical hypothyroid patients, although soyfoods do not adversely affect thyroid function in healthy subjects. The preponderance of the evidence indicates that for healthy individuals, with the exception of those relatively rare persons with allergies to soy protein, soyfoods can make important contributions to the diet. A look into a soy-based diet

Epigenetic Therapy for Cisplatin Resistance in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: The way Forward?

1 ISSN 1758-1966 10.2217/LMT.12.51 © 2013 Future Medicine Ltd Lung Cancer Manage. (2013) 2(1), 1–4 Lung cancer, in particular non-smallcell lung cancer (NSCLC), is the most common cause of cancer-related death in the world [1]. Rates of lung cancer will continue to rise owing to high levels of cigarette consumption in Asia and the developing world, and aging populations. Despite increased surgical resection rates, optimization of chemoradiotherapy and the introduction of targeted therapies, the treatment outcome for NSCLC remains poor [1]. The current standard of care for the majority of patients suitable for therapy involves treatment with a platinum-based chemotherapy regimen [1]. However, only a proportion of patients benefit and the remainder develop resistance to platinum-based therapy. Ongoing research aims to understand both the molecular mechanisms underpinning this resistance and identify agents or therapies that could sensitize or even resensitize patients to cisplatin-based therapeutic regimens. Targeting epigenetic mechanisms may represent one such approach. At its simplest, epigenetics can be described as stable and heritable changes in gene expression that are not due to changes in the primary DNA sequence, and is most commonly used to describe chromatinbased regulation of gene expression [1,2]. The main mechanisms used involve the laying down of modifications to DNA and histones, that are then utilized by various chromatin-modifying enzymes which can be categorized as ‘readers’, ‘writers’ and ‘erasers’ [2]. More recently, miRNAs, a form of noncoding RNA, have also been shown to affect epigenetic regulation by directly targeting the epigenetic machinery, leading them to be described as ‘epi-miRNAs’ [1]. Aberrant epigenetic regulation is now well established as a frequent event in NSCLC, with all known forms of epigenetic regulation playing a role [1]. This ‘epigenetic landscape’ can potentially be targeted and may have important implications for the management and treatment of NSCLC [1,2]. Critically, an emerging body of evidence now links some of these epigenetic events with cisplatin resistance.

Waterpipe smoking: a new tobacco pandemic entailing severe health risks?

Springer-Verlag 2012 The waterpipe (also named shisha, narghile, argileh, etc.) is a traditional aid for tobacco consumption in Asia and Northern Africa. In these countries, waterpipes differ considerably in shape and size. Although exact numbers are still missing to date, web blogs, ‘‘hookah bar’’ advertisements, and the advent of popular waterpipe stores in larger and smaller cities alike indicate that both the general interest and the number of young people smoking waterpipes have consid

Global food-price shocks and poor people – an overview

Hunger has been on the rise since the mid-1990s, due to a variety of factors, including a lack of policy attention and a sense of complacency generated by long-term real declines in food prices. Food prices rose sharply after 2006, and there is considerable controversy over the reasons why. Analysts have pointed to a number of factors as possible causes, including rising fuel prices, diversion of food crops into biofuels, speculation, increased meat consumption in Asia, climate change, and environmental degradation, among others. There is disagreement about both the role played by some of these factors in driving up prices, and also the weight to assign to each specific factor. Discussion of the consequences of higher food prices has been based primarily on modelling; this special issue of Development in Practice presents some new modelling results, as well as results from field research on the actual consequences for poor farmers and consumers in developing, transition, and developed countries. The price increases led to sometimes violent protests in scores of countries in 2007–08, thereby putting hunger back on the front policy burner. Food prices spiked in mid-2008 and remained well above the levels of the early 2000s, globally, throughout 2009–10. By December 2010, prices had risen again, surpassing the peaks of 2008. There is consensus concerning policy prescriptions on what to do about higher food prices; this is embodied, for example, in the UN's Comprehensive Framework for Action of 2008. However, the authors of a number of the articles in this special issue find limitations to that consensus and offer additional policy prescriptions.

Sport, Media, and Consumption in Asia: A Merchandised Milieu

The saturation of Western media sport markets has prompted a turn to the predominantly youthful, increasingly urbanized cultural milieu associated with forms of “aspirational” middle-class consumption of globalized Western sport. Asia has become a prime target for the expansionary strategies of some of the world’s most powerful professional sports leagues, teams, and media conglomerates. Although other media and cultural industry sectors in Asia, such as film and television drama, enjoy increasing content localization and intraregional exchange, media sport remains decidedly Western dominated. The influence of transnational broadcasters in Asia and the intensive marketing efforts of Western sports interests are combining to privilege European- and American-based sports leagues, such as the English Premier League and the National Basketball Association, which tend to “crowd out” domestic Asian professional sport. Sport fan engagement within the “media sports cultural complex” in Asia tends to produce a form of consumption predisposed to advantage globally marketed Western sports competitions and their celebrities (some of whom are “migrant” Asian sport stars) and so hampers the development of “indigenous” Asian sport and media. This article critically analyzes sport and consumption in Asia with reference to a range of sports, especially, soccer and basketball, and various Asian nations, particularly, China.

Is a glass of Merlot the symbol of globalization?

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate how underlying globalization could influence Asian consumers' wine drinking patterns and behaviors. Specifically, a theoretical framework that explains the underlying motivations of Asian wine consumers is developed.Design/methodology/approachA broad range of literature is reviewed in an attempt to develop a theoretical framework for the impacts of globalization on the Asian wine market.FindingsThree key forces that drive change in the Asian wine markets are identified; these changes explain the explosive growth of wine consumption in Asian countries.Research limitations/implicationsA theoretical framework is developed in an effort to explain the impacts of globalization on Asian wine consumption. Therefore, no empirical tests are conducted to validate the theoretical framework. Future studies could test the theoretical model by conducting an empirical study.Practical implicationsMulti‐faceted global progress in terms of economic, technological, and socio‐cultural influences has influenced Asian consumers' wine consumption positively. Therefore, Asian consumers' wine consumption will continue to grow significantly. A theoretical framework that explains the relationship between the progress of globalization and wine consumption in Asia is developed. This framework will help international wine marketers better understand the recent rapid growth of wine consumption in Asia.Originality/valueThis is the first research that attempts to investigate how globalization has affected the Asian wine market.