By Kanae Takagi

Chopsticks are indispensable when we eat Japanese food. The subject here, however, is disposable wooden chopsticks which are an important part of Japanese food culture. In Japan, the consumption of disposable wooden chopsticks comes to 250 billion a year. This amount equals about 200 pair of chopsticks a year per person. When converted to trees, this amount corresponds to 2.5 million trees. At present, about 96 percent of disposable wooden chopsticks used in Japan are imported, and about 98 percent of those are from China (Forestry Agency data). However, when we use disposable wooden chopsticks, we never think the materials are from trees in forests in other countries. The more we use them, the more trees are cut down, which in turn causes various environmental problems. It is time to think about the disposable culture spreading in Japan by taking a closer look at the use of disposable wooden chopsticks.

Have you ever heard "mai-hashi" (my chopsticks) or "mochi-hashi" (portable chopsticks)? These phrases literally mean your own portable chopsticks. Because some people feel uneasy about using disposable wooden chopsticks, they use their own chopsticks that they bring form their home when eating out. There is even "mai-hashi" clubs (http://www.mother-earth.ne.jp) and they are active in spreading their ideas of "mai-hashi." Lately, people who carry their own chopsticks when they eat out are gradually increasing. For this purpose, "mai-hashi" sets are sold for \1,890 at Sapporo Tokyu Hands. To use such chopsticks gives us a chance to think about not only the disposable culture, but also about food itself. Hopefully, people eager to protect the environment will increase in the future.

Think about the reuse of chopsticks. Disposable wooden chopsticks are used in Japanese restaurants, but in Western food restaurants knives and forks are used. The important point is that disposable wooden chopsticks are used only once, and knifes and forks can be washed and used again. Why are disposable wooden chopsticks not used repeatedly? The reason might relate to the Japanese "culture of cleanliness." Therefore, even if chopsticks are washed, we will hesitate to use those chopsticks which other people used. We must understand that disposable wooden chopsticks are a form of Japanese food culture, which has long history. However, most people believe that disposable wooden chopsticks are clean, when in fact they may not be clean because bleach and detergent are used in the production process of disposable wooden chopsticks and their residuals are detected in them. On the basis of such facts, reviewing the "culture of cleanliness" is a matter of urgency. From this point of view and from an ecological perspective, it is time to reconsider the culture of disposable wooden chopsticks. In other words, we are forced to take the next step and create a new culture of chopstick reuse.

Let's compare Japan with China, which has a culture of chopsticks like Japan. China has a reusable chopstick culture in which they use, wash and reuse them, and they do not use disposable wooden chopsticks at home. Lately, in China however, disposable wooden chopsticks are used in stands which do not have water supplies or in restaurants which sell cheap foods. The reason for this is that disposable wooden chopsticks are over-produced and have begun circulating in China. However, Chinese people are concerned with cutting down forest timber, so a tendency against using disposable wooden chopsticks is spreading in China. Nowadays bamboo or wooden chopsticks in a paper pack are used in such stands and restaurants (Hokkaido Shimbun Evening News, 2006, June 1.) This is a system where dealers collect used chopsticks, wash and disinfect them, put them into paper packs and sell them to eating places as a business. These are not disposable wooden chopsticks to throw away, but are a form of reusing. China has never had a custom of using disposable wooden chopsticks. The culture of Japanese disposable wooden chopsticks has influenced China greatly. We must take this fact seriously.

How many more trees must be cut down if consumption of disposable chopsticks increases in foreign countries? In addition, what damage would this cause? We must think sincerely about changing from the age of "mass production and mass consumption" to the age of "small production and reuse." If we continue with this short-sighted, profit-oriented mass production system, human beings will not survive. We must think about ways to live close together with nature, and put those ways into practice. Japan, the country in which the culture of disposable wooden chopsticks originated, must take the lead in changing to a culture for the reuse of chopsticks to keep the earth beautiful.