Estimating Demand Elasticities in a Rapidly Aging Society : The Cases of Selected Fresh Fruits in Japan

It has been known for some time that the younger Japanese eat much less fresh fruit than the older generations (White Paper, 1995; Declining Orange, 2009). This difference — younger people consume perhaps 50 percent less than older people — is one of the more striking examples of age-related differences in food consumption. Japan’s population structure has also undergone striking changes. For example, in 1980 the elderly (60~ years of age) accounted for 11% of the total household members covered by the government’s Family Income and Expenditure Surveys (FIES), whereas they accounted for more than 20% in 2000 and nearly 30% in 2010*1 .