Futons (bedding) 1999
  1. Although the term "futon" is said to have originally referred to round mats made from bulrush in modern times come to be used as a general term for bedding. Traditional types of bedding were "shitone" cushions and mattresses for sitting and sleeping on, and "fusuma" that the sleeper used to cover him or herself with. From the 17th century, shitone evolved into the present-day futon mattress ("shikibuton"), and fusuma evolved into sleeved coverlets ("kaimaki") or quilts ("kakebuton"). The fusuma used since ancient times were shaped like clothing and used to cover oneself during sleep, and they evolved into kaimaki when people started filling them with cotton. Futons may be broadly divided into futon bedding and "zabuton" cushions for sitting on. Here the term futon is used to refer to futon bedding (futon quilts and mattresses), and the term zabuton is used to refer to the cushion-type futons used for sitting on.
  2. The term futon is normally used to refer to bedding made from a cloth cover with a vegetable fiber (e.g. cotton or hemp), animal fiber (e.g. wool, feathers, floss or camelhair) or synthetic fiber (e.g. polyester or acrylic fiber) filling. In this article, we exclude sleeping bags and Western-style mattresses.
  3. The use of cotton bedding began to spread in Japan in the 17th century. Before then, bedding had been made from various materials and took a variety of forms. Until the modern period, ordinary people used to use scraps of hemp and ramie, sedge, rush, bracken scraps and seaweed to weave into and stuff mats and mattresses. How they were used varied from province to province.
  4. In modern Japan, most traditional futons (both the futon mattresses and quilts) were made of futon covers filled with cotton stuffing. They are restuffed about once every three years. Futons must normally be kept dry at all times, and so are aired in the sun to get rid of moisture. The filling is fluffed up to restore a futon's elasticity and ability to retain heat. After the Second World War, however, the impact of Westernization resulted in a growing number of people using beds, and so-called Western-style futons ("yofuton") emerged. Even families that slept in futons laid out on tatami-mat floors disliked using heavy cotton futons. Many people thus began to use lighter, warmer, more absorbent and permeable down quilts, and switched to using wool and synthetic fiber filled futon mattresses that were warm and more absorbent and permeable instead of cotton-filled futon mattresses.
  5. 34,000 tons of futons were imported in 1998, about 17% less than in the previous year. 6,705 tons of these were down or feather quilts, down around 29% from the previous year. Imports began to grow rapidly from 1996, but downward pressure on imports has since increased as a result of the slump in personal consumption and the depreciation of the yen. Until the collapse of the bubble economy, most imported futons were luxury down quilts. Subsequently, however, leading discount stores and the like began buying cheap down quilts in bulk from China and lowered their selling prices, and so sales of down quilts shot up. Demand for such cheap down quilts appears to have worked itself out, though, because they can be used for around ten years and so those who want them have already bought and are using them. With respect to kotatsu coverlets (covers for tables with a heat source underneath), there was a temporary surge in imports when needlework operations were transferred to Asia, but imports have been sluggish since 1994.
  6. Imports over the past few years were as follows:


    		1996 1997 1998
    Down quilts 15,301 13,025 8,168
    Woolen quilts and kotatsu coverlets, etc.
    		 32,916 31,106 28,343
    Total 48,217 44,131 36,511
    (Unit: million yen; Source: Japan Trade Monthly)

  7. The main sources of imports were as follows:
    1. Down quilts

      		1996 1997 1998
      China 12,586 10,832 6,897 (84.4%)
      Germany 487 565 519 (6.4%)
      Taiwan 983 710 368 (4.5%)
      Hungary 823 684 287 (3.5%)
      Finland 58 52 29 (0.4%)
      Others 364 182 69 (0.8%)
      Total 15,301 13,025 8,168 (100%)
    2. Other bedding

      		1996 1997 1998
      China 25,945 22,702 20,739 (73.2%)
      Vietnam 2,356 2,874 2,458 (8.7%)
      Thailand 1,193 1,735 1,765 (6.2%)
      US 515 644 684 (2.4%)
      Denmark 160 407 529 (1.9%)
      Others 2,746 2,744 2,169 (7.6%)
      Total 32,916 31,106 28,343 (100%)
      (Unit: million yen; Source: Japan Trade Monthly)
  8. In terms of value, around 30-40% of futons sold in Japan are imported. Imports of down quilts are especially high, and account for some 40-50% of sales. Imports of other types of futon are low however.

    Share of imports in Japanese market

    		 1995 1996 1997
    Domestic products
    		 65,325 88,484 85,352
    Imports 45,327 48,216 44,131
    Exports 955 1,209 972
    Share of imports 41.3% 35.6% 34.3%
    (Unit: million yen; Source: Japan Trade Monthly)

  9. The above figures are for finished futon products. However, many down and wool futons are turned into finished products in Japan using imported wool, down and feathers as filling, and such products are included under domestic products above. Annual domestic demand for down quilts peaked at 9 million pcs., but demand has now worked itself out and has fallen to 4 million pcs. a year.
  10. There are no restrictions on futons at the point of import. At the point of sale, however, they are covered by the provisions of the Household Articles Quality Labeling Law, the Law for the Prevention of Unreasonable Premiums and Misrepresentation Concerning Products and Services, and the Law on Controls on Household Articles Containing Harmful Substances.
  11. Futons must be labeled under Fire Services Law, and it is also best to get them tested for safety and toxicity by the Japan Fire Retardant Association. Additional labeling schemes run by the industry itself are the Good Futon Mark (GF Mark), Gold Label and Wool Mark Label.
  12. Quilts containing at least 50% down are called down quilts, and those containing 50% or under [sic] are called feather futons.
  13. Although necessities of life, futons are also consumer durables, and so turnover is poor. In the future, we can expect to see greater product differentiation and diversification. In addition to products catering to consumers' taste for high quality and brand-name goods, for example, there will also probably appear a greater range of products for the health conscious (such as futons containing magnets and futon mattresses to straighten the spine).


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