Question about the Japanese

Globex

Globex

President Scorpio
Joined
Mar 16, 2007
Messages
437
This question is for those who live in Japan or are fairly familiar with Japan and its customs. How true is the following excerpt from Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond?

Guns said:
The Japanese are fanatics for fresh food. A container of milk in a U.S. supermarket bears only one date: the expiration date. When my wife and I visited a Tokyo supermarket with one of my wife's Japanese cousins, we were surprised to discover that in Japan a milk container bears three dates: the date the milk was manufactured, the date it arrived at the supermarket, and the expiration date. Milk production in Japan always starts at one minute past midnight, so that the milk that goes to the market in the morning can be labeled as today's milk. If the milk were produced at 11:59 P.M., the date on the container would have to indicate that the milk was made yesterday, and no Japanese consumer would buy it.
Click to expand...
 
its so true... you have no idea how true it is... words fail... i just simply cant describe how true it is... words fail
 
I've read that book and I've never come across a passage like that. :huh:
 
Dunno, never been to Japan. I suspect their cup o 'noodles packets have a similar shelf life to US ones. If they were true fanatics for fresh food they wouldn't live in cities.

Eran of Arcadia said:
It may have been related to the fact that (I think) the Japanese are a lot more lactose intolerant than Westerners.
Click to expand...
Black people have a lot of issues with dairy but the dairy industries desires for profits combined with lack of education = profit on ignorance. :(
 
Narz said:
If they were true fanatics for fresh food they wouldn't live in cities.
Click to expand...

Moving to the country is not really a feasible option for most of the population, that doesn't mean they don't want their food as fresh as they can reasonably get it.
 
That map cuts off in the same way a movie stops playing right before the climax is reached (could have used a few other examples, I guess)
I mean much of the Mediterranean is data-less! With Southern Europe somewhat intolerant I'm thinking the rest may be the same, but there is no way to know :( ok, there is, but we need some complete maps, no fault of your own of course, Godwynn.
 
I'm pretty sure that's correct. I've never been to Japan, but my lecturer on all things Japanese spends about six months a year there, and for some bizarre reason collects Japanese chocolate wrappers and similar stuff. Many of them have three dates, so I would imagine the milk would too, although i can't be sure. He had a chocolate milk-bottle, but I don't remember what it had on it.
 
Jared Diamond: full of "diamonds" as ever...
 
You know, of all your many insane issues, I think your frothing hatred for Jared Diamond is the oddest.
 
Hah! you're right. He's of Polish-Jewish descent. Now it makes sense.
 
I don't have milk in my fridge right now, but I've only ever seen one date on milk. It might be done on some kinds of milk, but it's certainly not a common practice. I think the overall thrust of the passage is generally very accurate though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

A
Kingdom in the Closet: Saudi Arabia's Remarkably Vibrant Gay Community
2
Replies
36
Views
8K
Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde
Bamspeedy
The US Immigration process
2
Replies
31
Views
2K
Thoughtful Thug
Thoughtful Thug
mrt144
Best way to smuggle bonds to Switzerland?
Replies
9
Views
1K
mrt144
mrt144
U
Yomiuri opposes Yasukuni Shrine visits
2
Replies
35
Views
2K
Ramius75
R
A
The Jared Diamond discussion thread
2
Replies
32
Views
3K
Mott1
Mott1
Top Bottom