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The Fraudulent Fertilizer Problem in the Late Meiji Era: Credibility Acquisition by New Market Entrants and the Agricultural Experiment Stations

In: Imitation, Counterfeiting and the Quality of Goods in Modern Asian History

Author

Listed:
  • Chikashi Takahashi

    (Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology)

Abstract

Around the year 1900 new types of fertilizerFertilizer such as chemical fertilizers and animal-based fertilizers began to appear in the Japanese fertilizer market, and at the same time there were new entrants handling these fertilizers. The lack of information Information on the fertilizers themselves and on the new entrants caused confusion, which consequently degraded the quality of market. Amid this confusion, the Agricultural Experiment Station of the then Department of Agriculture and Commerce in 1893 inaugurated a service called the request analysis service that accepted requests from the “public” to analyze the composition of fertilizers. Because use of this service was non-binding, this was thus not sufficient to eliminate all fraudsFraud ; on the other hand, because of the inexpensive nature of obtaining the “cachet” from this public organization, it was broadly used by new entrants in the fertilizer market. The information on the new fertilizers (components, good dealers, etc.) furnished by the Agricultural Experiment Station was not only released by the Station but also aggressively used by the new entrants in their advertisements, promotional brochures, and other PR documents to aid them in acquiring credibility. In addition, the existing fertilizer market already had an established information communication channel and accommodated the new entrants with a ready means of spreading informationInformation . Some of the fertilizer merchantsMerchants who used this service gained credibility and saw significant business growth, hence playing a role in bridging the fertilizer demand and new fertilizer supply. By promoting the entry of new companies into the market and acquainting the public with new fertilizers, the request analysis service reduced the confusion in the fertilizer market and contributed to the alleviation of the demand crunch.

Suggested Citation

  • Chikashi Takahashi, 2017. "The Fraudulent Fertilizer Problem in the Late Meiji Era: Credibility Acquisition by New Market Entrants and the Agricultural Experiment Stations," Studies in Economic History, in: Kazuko Furuta & Linda Grove (ed.), Imitation, Counterfeiting and the Quality of Goods in Modern Asian History, chapter 0, pages 47-71, Springer.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:stechp:978-981-10-3752-8_3
    DOI: 10.1007/978-981-10-3752-8_3
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