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原田英語の時事英語ジュニア｜英語ニュース ワークシート（高校生レベル）

Class ____ No. ____ Name ____________________

お米の値段はなぜ2倍に？備蓄米の放出と「令和の米騒動」のしくみ

Inside Japan's Rice Crisis

音声・ゲームはこちらから

1Supermarket rice prices in Japan have roughly doubled over the past year. In spring, the average price of a 5-kilogram bag climbed above 4,000 yen. Some supermarkets had empty rice shelves.

2Several problems piled up at once. An extreme heat wave in 2023 damaged the harvest, leaving far less rice of good quality. In August 2024, a strong earthquake led to the government's first-ever advisory about a possible mega-quake, and shoppers rushed to stock up. Growing demand from foreign tourists added even more pressure.

3Some experts said there is also a long-term cause. Since the 1970s, Japan has encouraged farmers to grow less rice in order to keep prices stable, which left little room to respond when supply suddenly fell short.

4To cool prices, the government began releasing rice from its emergency stockpile of about 910,000 tons. The first sales went through auctions and were slow to reach stores. From late May, however, the government sold stockpiled rice directly to retailers, allowing them to offer bags for about 2,000 yen.

5Private imports of rice rose sharply, mainly from the United States. One major supermarket chain began selling rice from California in June. Rice from South Korea arrived in April, the first such imports since 1999. In the week ending June 15, the average price of a 5-kilogram bag fell to 3,920 yen. It was the first time since early March that the price was below 4,000 yen.

Words　単語

roughlyA2副おおよそ、ほぼabout, not exactly
piled upA2熟積み重なった（pile up の過去形）grew bigger as more things were added
harvestA2名収穫the crops that farmers gather in one season
stock upB2熟買いだめする、たくわえるto buy a lot of something to keep
demandB1名需要how much people want to buy something
stableB1形安定したnot changing much and staying steady
supplyB1名供給the amount of something that is ready to sell
stockpileB2名備蓄、たくわえa large amount of something kept for later use
retailerB2名小売店、小売業者a shop or business that sells things to people
importsB2名輸入（品）（import の複数形）goods brought in from other countries to sell

単語のレベル：CEFR-J（『CEFR-J Wordlist Version 1.6』 東京外国語大学投野由紀夫研究室. （URL: https://www.cefr-j.org/download.html より 2026年8月ダウンロード））

1. Reading Quiz　本文の内容に合うものを選ぼう

  1. What has happened to supermarket rice prices over the past year?

    A. It fell to half.B. It roughly doubled.C. It stayed the same.D. It rose by about 10 percent.

  2. What made shoppers stock up in August 2024?

    A. A typhoon warningB. A new rice festivalC. An official advisory about a possible mega-quakeD. A TV cooking show

  3. What long-term cause do some experts point to?

    A. Farmers were encouraged to grow less rice.B. Japan stopped eating rice.C. Rice was exported to every country.D. Farmers moved to cities in the 1990s.

  4. How large was the government's emergency stockpile?

    A. About 2,000 tonsB. About 40,000 tonsC. About 4 million tonsD. About 910,000 tons

  5. What changed from late May?

    A. Rice was sold only online.B. Stockpiled rice was sold directly to retailers.C. Imports were stopped.D. Prices were fixed by law.

2. True or False　正しければ T、違っていれば F

  1. (     ) The 2023 heat wave reduced the amount of good-quality rice.

  2. (     ) The first stockpile sales reached stores very quickly.

  3. (     ) In mid-June, the average price fell below 4,000 yen.

  4. (     ) Japan stopped importing rice from other countries.

3. Fill in the Blanks　下の語から選んで空らんをうめよう（形を変えずに）

stockpileharvestdemandroughlystableretailers

  1. Supermarket rice prices in Japan have _____ doubled over the past year.

  2. Since the 1970s, Japan has encouraged farmers to grow less rice in order to keep prices _____, which left little room to respond when supply suddenly fell short.

  3. Growing _____ from foreign tourists added even more pressure.

  4. An extreme heat wave in 2023 damaged the _____, leaving far less rice of good quality.

  5. From late May, however, the government sold stockpiled rice directly to _____, allowing them to offer bags for about 2,000 yen.

  6. To cool prices, the government began releasing rice from its emergency _____ of about 910,000 tons.

4. Word Order　語を並べかえて正しい文にしよう

  1. ( at / once / piled / Several / problems / up ) .

  2. ( rice / Some / shelves / supermarkets / had / empty ) .

  3. ( tourists / pressure / even / added / Growing / foreign / from / demand / more ) .

5. Think and Write　英語で答えてみよう

  1. Should the government control food prices when they rise quickly? Why or why not?（食べ物の値段が急に上がったとき、政府は値段を調整すべきだと思いますか？理由も考えよう。）

  2. What could make young people want to become rice farmers?（どうすれば若い人が米農家になりたいと思うようになるでしょうか？）

Answers　解答

1. (1) B　(2) C　(3) A　(4) D　(5) B

2. (1) T　(2) F　(3) T　(4) F

3. (1) roughly　(2) stable　(3) demand　(4) harvest　(5) retailers　(6) stockpile

4.

  1. Several problems piled up at once.
  2. Some supermarkets had empty rice shelves.
  3. Growing demand from foreign tourists added even more pressure.

全文訳

1日本のスーパーのお米の値段が、この1年でおよそ2倍になりました。春には、5キロ袋の平均価格が4000円を超えました。お米の棚がからっぽになったスーパーもありました。

2いくつもの問題が一度に重なりました。2023年の記録的な猛暑で収穫が打撃を受け、品質のよいお米が大きく減りました。2024年8月には、強い地震をきっかけに、政府が巨大地震の可能性について初めての注意情報を出し、買い物客がこぞって買いだめしました。外国人観光客による需要の増加も、さらに追い打ちをかけました。

3長い目で見た原因もあると指摘する専門家もいます。1970年代から、日本は値段を安定させるために農家にお米の生産を減らすよう促してきたため、急に供給が足りなくなったときに対応する余地がほとんどありませんでした。

4値段を落ち着かせるため、政府は約91万トンある緊急用の備蓄米を放出し始めました。最初の売り渡しは入札で行われ、店に届くまで時間がかかりました。しかし5月下旬からは、政府が備蓄米を小売店に直接売り渡したため、店は1袋約2000円で売り出せるようになりました。

5民間によるお米の輸入も、主にアメリカから大きく増えました。ある大手スーパーのチェーンは、6月にカリフォルニア産のお米を売り出しました。4月には韓国のお米が輸入されました。韓国からの輸入は1999年以来のことです。6月15日までの1週間で、5キロ袋の平均価格は3920円まで下がりました。4000円を下回ったのは3月上旬以来初めてでした。

文法ポイント：分詞構文（～ing で結果を表す）

文の後ろに ～ing を続けて「その結果～」を表す。本文の An extreme heat wave in 2023 damaged the harvest, leaving far less rice of good quality. は「猛暑が収穫に打撃を与え、その結果よいお米が大きく減った」という意味。

出典：Reuters（Interaksyon 転載）、The Japan News / Asia News Network、CNBC（NBC 7 San Diego 転載） ほか（記事は原田英語の時事英語ジュニアのオリジナル）｜https://www.haradaeigo.com/jijieigo-junior/news/2025-06-18-japan-rice-price-surge/