The attacks are being attributed to a shortage of acorns in the bears’ natural habitat, forcing them to wander into populated areas in search of food.

For years in Takikawa there was perhaps one bear sighting every few years, but since May 28 there have already been a total of 10 this year.

Vegetable prices are rising rapidly in Japan after a deadly heatwave saw highs of more than 40C. Record-breaking temperatures triggered a spike in the cost of some foods with increases of up to 65 per cent.  An agriculture ministry official in Tokyo warned about "pretty severe price moves" for vegetables if predictions of more weeks of hot weather held up, resulting in less rain than usual.