The contributed article by our president, Kaneko was published in Kyoto Shinbun on 2024 January 1st.
Interaction is what creates peace
Last year was a year marked by conflict and disaster. The Russian invasion of Ukraine entered its second year and clashes between Israel and the Islamic group Hamas are still ongoing. Last February, the Turkey-Syria Earthquake struck the southeast of Turkey. This was followed in September by a massive flood in Libya. Both disasters took many lives.
As a trading company specializing in the import and export of fresh foods and flowers, our business has been directly impacted by such conflicts and natural disasters. For example, our partnership with a Ukrainian seafood company, which processes some of our salmon, was severely affected by the war. We also have our business partners in the Turkish seafood industry, and we raised aid and donations to both companies to support their recovery.
Last year, I visited eight countries in Southeast Asia, Europe, and the United States, and busily engaged in developing new customer relationships. Though our business is going well, it was clear that the conflicts and natural disasters has casted a cloud over many people’s everyday lives. In Japan, there has been a series of surges in food prices. Additionally, factors such as the interest rate gap between Japan and the US has led to a continued devaluation of the Japanese Yen.
Although our exports declined slightly due to the release of the treated water from Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station, our overall results remain strong due to boosting domestic demand and tourists visiting Japan.
We expect to see continuous conflicts and the effects of global warming. We believe that interacting with people from around the world, who are from different cultures and backgrounds will contribute to world peace.
Last year was a year marked by conflict and disaster. The Russian invasion of Ukraine entered its second year and clashes between Israel and the Islamic group Hamas are still ongoing. Last February, the Turkey-Syria Earthquake struck the southeast of Turkey. This was followed in September by a massive flood in Libya. Both disasters took many lives.
As a trading company specializing in the import and export of fresh foods and flowers, our business has been directly impacted by such conflicts and natural disasters. For example, our partnership with a Ukrainian seafood company, which processes some of our salmon, was severely affected by the war. We also have our business partners in the Turkish seafood industry, and we raised aid and donations to both companies to support their recovery.
Last year, I visited eight countries in Southeast Asia, Europe, and the United States, and busily engaged in developing new customer relationships. Though our business is going well, it was clear that the conflicts and natural disasters has casted a cloud over many people’s everyday lives. In Japan, there has been a series of surges in food prices. Additionally, factors such as the interest rate gap between Japan and the US has led to a continued devaluation of the Japanese Yen.
Although our exports declined slightly due to the release of the treated water from Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station, our overall results remain strong due to boosting domestic demand and tourists visiting Japan.
We expect to see continuous conflicts and the effects of global warming. We believe that interacting with people from around the world, who are from different cultures and backgrounds will contribute to world peace.
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