Shoppers browsing in supermarkets around the world would once have been reassured by a 'Made in Japan' tag.
But a wave of problems such as a recent mislabelling controversy and festering worries over nuclear contamination have tainted the nation's reputation as a food safe-haven.
The growing list of food scandals could dent Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's push to boost exports of high-end products such as Kobe beef, organic sake and even gimmicky square watermelons. That drive is part of efforts to double agricultural, marine and forestry shipments by 2020 and shake the economy out of stagnation.
"The government's focus is on promoting industry, improving trade and helping the economy get better," said Yasuaki Yamaura, an official at the Consumers Union of Japan. "Keeping food safe and dealing with the needs of consumers comprises very little of what they do."
From radiation-tainted beef entering the supply chain after the Fukushima disaster in 2011 to tardiness in developing a test for feed additives in meat imports, question marks have sprung up over the way Japan deals with food for both local consumption and for export.
This autumn, several major hotels and restaurants in department stores admitted using inferior ingredients to those listed in menus - some for 17 years. Cheaper whiteleg shrimp was sold as premium Japanese Shiba shrimp, imported beef was touted as high-end wagyu and orange juice from cartons was described as freshly-squeezed.
"These incidents have surfaced one after the other, and this inappropriate labelling has resulted in a loss of trust among consumers," said top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga.
Consumer groups and experts blame lack of funding and bureaucracy for weak oversight.
"In the Food Safety Commission and the Consumer Affairs Agency budgets and staff are extremely small," said Yamaura.
"The staff are made up of officials that come over from the agricultural ministry and the health, labour and welfare ministry for two years then return, so they end up not harshly criticizing their respective agencies."
Spokesmen for both the Food Safety Commission and Consumer Affairs Agency said their respective office staffing levels of 110 and 300 were sufficient. Extra funds to boost annual budgets of 1 billion yen ($9.8 million) and 9.25 billion yen would be welcome, they added. The agencies were created in the last 10 years to supplement food safety efforts at the agricultural and health ministries, where the bulk of the work is done.
