Examining market accessibility of
Malaysia’s Harumanis mango in Japan:
challenges and potentials
Rosidah Musa, Faridah Hassan, Jamaliah Mohd Yusof and Norzaidi Mohd Daud
Rosidah Musa is Associate
Professor and
Jamaliah Mohd Yusof is a
Lecturer, both based in the
Faculty of Business
Management, Universiti
Teknologi Mara, Selangor,
Malaysia. Faridah Hassan
is Director at the Institute of
Business Excellence,
Faculty of Business
Management, Universiti
Teknologi Mara, Selangor,
Malaysia.
Norzaidi Mohd Daud is
Head of Corporate Com.,
Publication and Database,
Malaysia Institute of
Transport, Universiti
Teknologi Mara, Selangor,
Malaysia.
DOI 10.1108/17515631011013078
Introduction
The agriculture sector has contributed significantly to the growth and development of the
Malaysian economy hence, it is appropriate for the agriculture and food sector to be
recognized as the third engine of Malaysia’s economic growth. Malaysia’s quest to be a
major net exporter of food by 2010 is supported by the mandate to reinvent the agriculture
sector. To ensure that this sector’s contribution to the national economy and its global
competitiveness remain strong in future, the Third National Agricultural Policy (NAP3) has
been formulated. The NAP3 covers the period 1998 to 2010, which was set out as a
framework for the agricultural sector future growth and continue to sustain as an important
sector in the economic development of the country. The Policy was largely guided by the
objectives and strategies of the National Development Policy and incorporates several
strategies and action plans to deal with expected challenges and changes to the
international economy.
It was reported that the markets for agricultural produce such as local fruits are experiencing
an intensive competitive environment domestically, particularly during the fruit season. As
such, it is envisaged that developing new markets, for example, penetrating challenging
markets such as Japan for fruits could represent a significant contribution of the agricultural
sector to export earnings. This effort could facilitate and support the country’s goal of
increasing its agricultural products export value to RM17.2 billion by 2010 (Federal
Agricultural Marketing Authority, 2005). Malaysia is a producer of a wide range of tropical
fruits such as pineapple, banana, mango, rambutan, durian, mangosteen, jack fruit, star
fruit, just to name a few.
Although the world market for tropical fruits is growing, Malaysia’s share in the overall
international fruit trade is relatively insignificant. Nonetheless, some interesting prospects for
future development of tropical fruits in Japan have been identified (Miyauchi and Perry,
1999). Hence, it is timely for Malaysia to examine the export market potential for its fresh
tropical fruits, particularly Harumanis mango into the Japanese market. Furthermore, it is
important to note that Malaysia and Japan have a Government to Government agreement on
exporting Harumanis, which is a special variety of mangoes specifically requested by
Japan. Harumanis is considered the ‘‘King of Mangoes’’ and is very popular in Malaysia
because of its deliciousness, sweet and aromatic fragrance. Hence, the exporting of
Harumanis mango could act as the gateway for other Malaysian fruits to penetrate the
Japanese market. Currently, Malaysian fresh fruits are still prohibited for export into Japan.
Japan is considered one of the largest markets in the world. Being the world’s biggest
importer for primary produce such as rice, wheat, soy bean, beef, fish, prawn, and animal
feed (Miyauchi and Perry, 1999), its market for fresh fruit is relatively undeveloped.
Furthermore, it was reported that the Japanese fruit growers satisfied only 60 percent of the
market demand (Japan Trade Directory, 2005). Thus Japan offers a promising opportunity
for foreign importers.
VOL. 11 NO. 1 2010, pp. 3-12, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1751-5637 j BUSINESS STRATEGY SERIES j PAGE 3
 Japan itself produces fresh fruits such as pears and persimmon for domestic consumption.
Based on economic data, Japan is the third major producer of persimmon after China and
Brazil (Japan Trade Directory, 2005). A wide variety of fresh fruits are imported to Japan, and
the most common are bananas, pineapples, oranges, grapefruits and mangoes. With a
strong economic background of Japanese households, the demand for other fresh fruits
keeps on increasing (Japan Trade Directory, 2005). It was noted by Miyauchi and Perry
(1999), that the volume of the imported fruits is declining, but the variety of imported fruits
and consumption of new and foreign tropical fruit is increasing. This reflects the Japanese
consumers’ desire for variety in the fresh fruits category. With regard to fresh fruits imports,
among the major exporters are the USA, for oranges, grapefruits, lemons and limes and
papayas; New Zealand is the key exporter for kiwifruits and Philippines is the major exporter
for bananas, pineapples and mangoes (Japan Trade Directory, 2005). The domestic
production has run at 3.0-3.2 million tons a year whilst imports’ share of total fresh fruit supply
is approximately 35 percent, about 1.6 million tons (see Japan Trade Directory, 2005). Even
though it is an attractive avenue to embark on export marketing specifically to lucrative
markets such as Japan, yet a tremendous amount of effort, time and money has to be
invested to fully understand the market and ultimately gain market accessibility. Therefore, a
detailed knowledge of the importing regulations and procedures, the Japanese distribution
system, business practices and the Japanese fruit consumption behaviour is imperative in
order to gain market accessibility. Importers might face a tremendous challenge as the
Japanese market is very different in terms of plant protections laws, distribution system and
the Japanese fruit consumption is much different from other cultures. Despite these issues,
surprisingly very little research has been carried out to enrich our insights on the knowledge
gap. In response to this void, this paper attempts to study the critical challenges and
potential of exporting fresh mangoes into the Japanese market. Thus, the aim of this study is
to explore and identify the challenges and potentials in exporting Harumanis mangoes to the
Japanese market. Specifically, the research aims to gain insights into the legal regulations
and administrative procedures of importing tropical fresh fruits as well as to understand the
Japanese distribution system of fresh fruits and business practices and the Japanese fruit
consumption behaviour.

Research design
A two-stage approach was used in this study. First, focus group discussion was conducted
in Malaysia with relevant exporters, agents, representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture
and Agro-based Industry, Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority (FAMA) and the Japanese
Embassy. The main objective of the focus group session was to understand the current rules
and regulations in importing fresh fruits to Japan and to gain some insights from panels that
have vast experience in exporting fresh fruits to Japan.
Second, several in-depth interviews were conducted in Japan with relevant key officers of
various fruit-related organisations such as the Import Promotion Department of the Japanese
External Trade Organization (1998) (JETRO), the import agents and wholesaler of fresh fruits
and also Fresh Produce Import Facilitation Association in Japan. Furthermore, relevant
information was also obtained from official reports published in Japan and Malaysia and
observations from field visits.
The in-depth interviews with the Japanese authorities were conducted during 7-19 October
2006 in various cities in Japan which include Osaka, Nagoya, and Tokyo. In addition, the
research members visited several hypermarkets and supermarkets in these cities to observe
the fresh fruits available with regard to varieties, prices, quality, packaging, and their country
of origin. Meetings with the relevant companies’ top management and top officials of Tottori
University and Wakayama University in Osaka were arranged by our research associates in
Japan. Company representatives from Nagoya came to Tokyo to be interviewed. Three
consumer surveys were conducted in Tottori and Wakayama University and Japanese Club,
in Kuala Lumpur.
The interviews were conducted between 10 and 19 October 2006 in three major cities in
Osaka, Nagoya, and Tokyo. On 10 October, an interview was held in Wakayama University in
Osaka with the President, Vice President and also other top management of the University.
On 11-12 October, 2006, the researchers attended a seminar on agriculture organised by
Tottori University. Most of the papers presented were mainly about the demand and supply

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of fresh fruits in the Japanese market. During the seminar, our research team distributed
structured questionnaires to the students and lecturers who attend this seminar. The main
purpose of this survey was to explore the preferences and awareness of Japanese
consumers of Malaysian’s tropical fruits.
While in Tottori we were also invited to attend a meeting organised by Japanese Agriculture
Association (JAA). We took this opportunity to interview the officers about the potential of
exporting Malaysian’s fruits in the Japanese market. We were also furnished with important
reports pertaining to the value of export and imported fruits in Japan. Subsequently, after the
meeting we were invited to visit the pear plantation. Tottori is well known as the biggest
producer of quality pears in Japan. We were also given the opportunity to visit JAA biggest
fruit collection centre, where the key workers are the nashi (pear) farmers themselves. We
were amazed by the high technology instruments that the factory employed in order to grade
and pack the fruits. On 14 October, the researchers travelled southbound to Toyokawa,
Nagoya where a meeting was conducted with the packaging manufacturer. During the visit
we were given the opportunity to witness the latest packaging material and technology used
by the factory. In Tokyo, we met with distributors, trading companies, importers, executives
of Jusco, Japan Fresh Produce Import and Safety Association, Ministry of Agriculture,
Forestry and Fisheries, Japan External Trade Organization, the OTA Fruit Auction Market and
also the fruits parlour.

Research findings
It was reported that most of the fruits import source is from the USA which constitutes about
30 percent of the total imports. In 2004, Malaysia took 21st place in terms of ranking for
importing the fresh fruits into Japan. The sales volume for the tropical fruits has been about 2
million yen per year (Japan Trade Directory, 2005)
It was also stated that the opportunities for exporters to import the fresh fruits into Japan are
great if they could produce good quality fruits. It was revealed that most of the foreign fruits
are imported by traders. In May 2006, the Japanese government imposed stringent
regulations on the suppliers of imported fresh fruits into Japan. The chemical content of the
fruits has to be reported in order to check against the Japanese positive chemical listing.
Owing to this stringent ‘‘traceability’’ protocol Japan was able to detect traces of prohibited
pesticides in the fresh fruits, particularly mangos from India.
The fruit importers assert that it is particularly very difficult to import fresh fruits to Japan.
There are only a few suppliers or traders who are able to import the fresh fruits. The critical
issue of importing fresh fruits has been quality and also the presence of fruit fly. For instance,
the importing agents had unpleasant experiences when importing mangosteen from
Thailand. For this reason they import other fruits instead, such as mango originating from
India. As such, this switch increased the level of competition among fresh mango sellers,
given that the fruit was already available in the Japanese market. It was observed that only
those traders who adhere strictly to the rules and regulation of importing foreign fruits would
be able to supply the fresh fruits to Japan. As a result of a discussion with the leading
supermarket key executives in Japan, it was unveiled that customers generally enjoy eating
fresh fruits, but they dislike peeling off the skin. As such, this segment of consumers prefers
to consume processed fruits such as pudding and juices.
In addition, the supermarkets were facing problems on their imported fruits such as black
spots typically found on most of the fruits. Apart from this, they also encountered a delivery
period issue where most traders could not comply with the earlier agreement on delivery
date(s). It is thus crucial that the fruits must be delivered as per agreement in order to
maintain their freshness and sweetness. Among the popular fresh fruits imported by the
supermarkets are papaya, mangosteen, and durian. Mangoes are regarded as the next
popular fruits sold by the supermarkets.
Looking into the possibilities of exporting the tropical fresh fruits into Japan, the importers
emphasised the import quarantine procedure (see Appendix 1 (Figure A1). In such a case,
the exporters have to establish a protection method where the fruits have to be frozen at
2 17.8C or have to undergo vapour heat treatment (VHT-fumigation method) in order to
eliminate fruit flies. The requirement for the VHT was also discussed and it was noted that
different fruits would require different level of temperature for the heating treatment. Thus, it

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VOL. 11 NO. 1 2010 BUSINESS STRATEGY SERIES PAGE 5
 is advisable for the exporters to focus on one fruit only if they would like to export into Japan
and apparently, this is more cost effective.
The Association of the importers highlighted on the importance and requirement of the
import quarantine procedures by Japan. In such a case, countries who would like to import
their fruits into Japan have to develop a quarantine method to protect the fruits. So far,
among the Asian countries, Thailand was successful after they developed the quarantine
method and technology that is required by Japan. The diagram of import quarantine
procedures is depicted in Appendix 1 (Figure A1). Currently, Japan is importing about
12,000 tons of mangoes annually from many different countries. For the past three years, the
importation of mango has increased in volume, which suggests that demand continues to
grow steadily. However, it was highlighted that if Malaysia is to import their fresh fruits into
Japan, they have to abide with the positive list to trace the chemical residue of the fruits.
From our meeting with the fruit wholesalers, it was mentioned that they mostly handle the
local fruits. Imported fruits such as banana and pineapples from Philippines, grapefruits
from USA and South Africa, oranges from USA, kiwi from New Zealand and avocado from
Mexico are also imported and distributed by the wholesalers. Fruits are used as a gift by the
Japanese consumers besides being consumed as a dessert. In Tokyo, they also have an
opportunity to eat the fresh fruits in a more luxurious way such as the fruit parlour. The fruit
parlour serves only the best quality fruits. Interestingly, the fruits are displayed in very
attractive packaging. They are either consumed in the parlour itself or purchased as gifts.

Conclusion and recommendations

Challenges
Japan has very stringent procedures for importation of fresh fruits, such as the Plant
Protection Law and the Food Sanitation Law. The Japanese quarantine system for imported
plants consists of prohibition of import, designation of port of import, phytosanitary
certificates issued by the exporting countries and import inspection. Under the Plant
Protection Law, any importer of fresh fruits shall submit an ‘‘Application for Inspection of
Plants and Import Prohibited Articles’’ to designated port of entry. In addition, ‘‘Phytosanitary
Certificate’’ must be issued by reliable and competent government agency of the exporting
country and attached to all quarantine-designated plants. Imports of host fresh fruits are
prohibited from countries or areas where certain destructive insects and diseases and areas
where fruit flies are commonly found. Owing to such stringent compliance procedures, very
few suppliers or exporters are able to import their fresh fruits into Japan. In most cases, more
than 90 percent of any fresh fruit comes from a single country or region (Japan Trade
Directory, 2005). Malaysia has applied for the lifting of the ban on its special mango variety
(Harumanis) via Government to Government Trade Agreement,. The procedure for lifting the
ban is composed of 13 steps as depicted in Appendix 2 (Figure A2).
Starting from May 2006, the Japanese government has imposed new regulations on
potential exporters to Japan. There are many fresh fruits which are prohibited for importation
to Japan under the Plant Protection Law. This law requires the fruits to be frozen at 2 17.8C
or these fruits have to undergo the vapour heat treatment (VHT). The reason for the treatment
is to eliminate fruit flies which could damage the quality of the fruits. Different fruits would
require different temperature for the vapour heating treatment. It is advisable for the
exporters to apply for lifting of the ban for one fruit initially as a gateway to other fruits into
Japan (see Appendix 2, Figure A2). This is because it is more cost effective in order to deal
with the stringent importation protocol.
Another challenge facing the exporters is in terms of the price. Since there are so many
exporters from many different countries competing to penetrate the Japanese market, price
becomes a critical issue. It is pertinent for fruit exporters to carefully and clearly position their
fruits in terms of uniqueness and nutritious value in order to compete and establish a position
against tropical fruits from other countries. Japanese consumers’ emphasis on quality can
be observed in the selection of fruits. The fruit quality in the Japanese market is defined by
four main characteristics which are:

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1. Fruit colour and appearance. The appearance of fruits is one indicator to determine the
fruit extrinsic quality. For instance, the colour of the mango skin should be yellowish,
slightly orangey or reddish. However, Harumanis is yellowish green, which is quite similar
to American mangoes. More importantly, the mangoes’ skin must be free from any
scratch, blemish or black spots. The imperfections on the fruit skin indicate that the fruit is
damaged and regarded as low quality.
2. Fruit taste. Fruit which are of higher brix (greater than 15) is regarded as of higher quality
and most preferred by the Japanese.
3. Fruit size. Mangoes should weigh about 300-400 grams per fruit. Consistency of the fruit
size is important; particularly if the fruits are to be marketed in a supermarket and
prestigious gift shop.
4. Health and safety. Information pertaining to nutritious value of the fruit must be
comprehensively reported. The Japanese are very concerned about the nutrition content
of fruits as they are a very health conscious society.
It is well recognized that the Japanese are very particular about fruit presentation; therefore in
order to be successful in this market fruits must be packaged in an attractive and effective
packaging. Quality packaging must successfully address the three P’s of packaging:
pleasing, practical and protective. The packaging for Harumanis should assure maximum
protection for the fruit, transport the fruit in the most freight-efficient manner and also be able to
achieve high impact merchandising appeal at the retail level. Undeniably, packaging appears
to be an investment to build a favourable image for the fruit as well as a means for
differentiation. Importantly, Japanese importers are very concerned about the exporters’
ability in supplying the mangoes in a consistent manner to fulfil the market demand. In this
matter, production of fruits must be adequate to meet the market demand. Perlis Department
of Agriculture has been identified as the government institution that is responsible to focus on
Harumanis plantation to yield a better quality of mangoes and to increase the acreage of
plantation. MARDI has been actively involved in research to improve the yield of the fruit and
eradicate the fungus-related problem. Even though it was acknowledged that Harumanis is
the ‘‘King of Mangoes’’, it is not without problems. Harumanis is susceptible to fungus, fruit
flies and pest attack. Moreover, Harumanis has a lower fruit yield compared with other mango
varieties. Furthermore, plantation and maintenance of Harumanis mangoes are more costly
than for other varieties. Undoubtedly, farmers prefer to plant other mango varieties. However,
farmers are willing to transform the present concentration on the plantation of other mango
varieties to Harumanis if the income derived from exporting to the Japanese market is better.

Potentials
Japan’s population of 127.8 million is considered wealthier and larger than those of other
countries. Japan is the world’s second largest market economy after the USA and
furthermore, represents one of the most important markets for many fruit exporters around the
world (Shim et al., 2001). Over 95 percent of total import volume of fresh fruit to Japan
comprises five fruits – pineapples, bananas, lemons, oranges, and grapefruit (Japan Trade
Directory, 2005). It was reported that the volume of these fruits is declining. However, the
variety of imported fruits and consumption of new and foreign tropical fruit is increasing
(Miyauchi and Perry, 1999). This reflects that the Japanese consumers desire new variety or
higher quality fruits in the fresh fruits category, while some are looking for unique tropical and
exotic foreign fruit such as mangoes. Previous research revealed that the deterrent factors
related to the purchase of mangoes in Japan are due to ‘‘unavailability’’ and ‘‘lack of
knowledge’’ (Miyauchi and Perry, 1999). However, during our field visit in Japan (June 2007), it
was observed that mangoes have become one of the most popular fruits in Japan (Figure 1
and Table I).
Fresh fruits are not only an important part of the Japanese diet, but more importantly, fruit
consumption is associated with its social and cultural practices. For instance, fruit is
considered a luxury item and thus plays an important and elaborate ritual part in Japan’s
extensive gift-giving practices (Shim et al., 2001). Indeed, fruit competes not with
vegetables but with high-price gift items or sweets and snacks (Gehrt and Shim, 1998). With
a strong economic background of individual households, the demand for other fresh fruits is
expected to steadily increase.

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VOL. 11 NO. 1 2010 BUSINESS STRATEGY SERIES PAGE 7
 Figure 1 The mango trend in the Japanese market

Table I Mango in the Japanese market

2004 share 2005 share Growth rate 2006 share Growth rate
2004 % 2005 % % 2006 % %

Philippines 7,303.335 59.20 6,274,329 51.69 86 5,443,485 43.9 86

Mexico 2,908.254 23.58 3,586,593 29.55 123 4,333,814 34.99 120.8
Thailand 900,803 7.30 955,195 7.8 106 1,098,636 8.87 115.0
Taiwan 504,820 4.09 475,591 3.92 94 444,233 3.59 93.4
Australia 474,909 3.85 342,837 2.82 72 338,030 2.73 98.6
USA 243,836 1.98 253,460 2.09 104 316,756 2.56 125.0
Brazil 0.0 249,968 2.06 403,039 3.25 161.2
India 8,776 0.07
Total 12,335,957 100 12,137,973 100 98 12,386,769 100 102.0

The Japanese consumers are generally not price sensitive in their consumption of fresh
fruits and are apparently willing to pay a premium price for fruit (Shim et al., 2001), making
it attractive to Malaysian exporters. This will only be realised if potential exporters
understand the Japanese consumer’s unique fruit consumption orientation, such as
concern for product safety and aesthetics. It should be noted that Japanese consumers
are conscious about brands and thus brands play an important role in their shopping
orientation. Strong brand recognition of local produce is likely to be a significant key to
global market. In this respect, the Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry has
introduced the ‘‘Malaysia Best’’ logo. Notably, Dole has successfully captured and
established its brand in Japan.
It should be highlighted that, if the fruits cannot be imported fresh, another option is to import
them as processed fruits, such as juice, jam, dried fruit or frozen fruit. Besides the fresh
fruits, the processed fresh-fruit based is also gaining in popularity. Among the popular ones
are the mango pudding and also fruit juice. However, it must be emphasised that the taste of

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 frozen fruits is significantly different from fresh fruits and the fresh fruits are more nutritious,
juicy and sweeter.
It was recognised that Harumanis mangoes have great potential to succeed in the Japanese
market. From our field observation and consumer acceptance survey, it was unveiled that
the Japanese have very favourable attitude towards mango and most likely will purchase it
whenever available in the market. Furthermore, it was also rated as the most favourite
tropical fruit when compared against mangosteen, rambutan, durian, star fruit and jack fruit.
Perhaps mango possesses the fruit attributes that match the Japanese taste preference
which are sweet and juicy. Based on the feedback from one of the leading importer of fresh
fruits in Japan, Harumanis is positioned within the quadrant of delicious and expensive (see
Figure 2).

Figure 2 Positioning map of Malaysian mangoes in the Japanese market

Figure 3 Mango calendar in Japan

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VOL. 11 NO. 1 2010 BUSINESS STRATEGY SERIES PAGE 9
 In conclusion, Harumanis has a good chance to succeed in the Japanese market if the fruit is
exported at the right time (see Figure 3), at the right price and employs effective promotional
strategies. We envisage that Harumanis mango will lead the way to be marketed in the
Japanese market as a premium mango.

References
Gehrt, K.C. and Shim, S. (1998), ‘‘The role of fruit in the Japanese gift market: situationally defined
market’’, Agribusiness, Vol. 14 No. 5, pp. 389-402.

Japan Trade Directory (2005), ‘‘Bibliography on rules and regulations’’, Japan Trade Directory,
Yamazaki.
Japanese External Trade Organization (1998), Marketing Guidebook for Major Imported Products,
Japanese External Trade Organization, Tokyo.
Miyauchi, Y. and Perry, C. (1999), ‘‘Marketing fresh fruit to Japanese consumers: exploring issues for
Australian exporters’’, European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 33 No. 1/2, pp. 196-214.
Shim, S., Gehrt, K. and Lotz, S. (2001), ‘‘Export implications for the Japanese fruit market: fruit-specific
lifestyle segments’’, International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, Vol. 29 No. 6, pp. 300-16.

Further reading
AgExporter (1995), ‘‘Quality is key to Japan’s fruit, vegetable market’’, March.
International Plant Protection Convention (1977), International Plant Protection Convention (new revised
text), November.
Matsuda, T. (2006), ‘‘Consumer demand for fresh fruits in Japan’’, Tottori University, Tottori.
www.famaExchange.org (2006), available at: www.famaExchange.org (accessed 10 July 2006).

Appendix 1

Figure A1 Import quarantine procedure

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Appendix 2

Figure A2 Procedures for lifting the ban on importation

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 About the authors
Rosidah Musa is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Business Management, Shah Alam,
Malaysia. She received her PhD in Marketing from Cardiff University, UK. Her research
interests include marketing and branding. To date, her research work has appeared in
international journals as well as conference proceedings.
Faridah Hassan is a Professor in Strategic Management and the Director of Institute of
Business Excellence, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam, Malaysia. She received her
PhD from Universiti Sains Malaysia and her research interests include marketing and
strategic management. She has published more than 20 papers in international journals as
well as conference proceedings.
Jamaliah Mohd Yusof is a PhD candidate at Graduate Business School, Universiti Teknologi
MARA, Shah Alam, Selangor. Her research interests include marketing and branding. Her
work has been published in chapters in a few books, international journals and conference
proceedings.
Norzaidi Mohd Daud is an Associate Professor in Management and the Senior Research
Fellow at Malaysia Institute of Transport (MiTrans), Universiti Teknologi MARA, Shah Alam,
Malaysia. He received his PhD from Multimedia University and his research interests include
marketing, management and statistics which won him more than 40 awards at national and
international levels. He has published ten books and more than 30 articles in international
journals (IMDS, Humanomics, AP, CWIS, MPM, IJSS, IJBSR, JCIS, IJEF, IJMIE, IMCS, IJIL
etc.) and conference proceedings. Norzaidi Mohd Daud is the corresponding author and
can be contacted at: zaidiuitm2000@yahoo.com

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