There are a number of lobby groups in Japan that have been trying to hold back TPP, among them the medical, education, insurance, and legal sectors, but the one group with the greatest sway over TPP is the farming lobby.

In light of the daily onslaught of "feel good" news about Abenomics, those of us in business are starting to wonder when all the positive commentary will translate into actual improved sales and earnings in our own teams.

This week we thought we'd cover a number of issues relating to safety and how the bigger the problems, the bigger the fudging that goes on to reconcile the solutions with their attendant costs.

The job of the "Cool Japan" fund will be to promote Japanese content, high-status food, and cultural products abroad, and to presumably encourage people to travel to Japan and try them here as well.