Fumiyo Layman: Chinese men becoming 'herbivores'

After recent reports on China's booming cosmetic market for men, du shi yu nan, the Chinese term for metrosexuals, has become a new concept for understanding men's changing role in Chinese society. According to Euromonitor International, sales of men's health and beauty products in China were estimated to be $269 million last year, more than that in North America in 2010. Sales are expected to grow significantly this year, too.

Undoubtedly, more young Chinese men are buying cosmetic products than before. But it would be too superficial to call all young Chinese men who buy such products metrosexuals. Besides, most young Chinese men don't want to be identified as du shi yu nan.

If we analyze such gender-neutral men's behavior further, we may find this trend to be associated with China's changing society. Japan, too, has seen the emergence of gender-neutral young men. The Japanese term, soushokukei, or "herbivore men" in English, was coined by Japanese pop culture columnist Maki Fukasawa in 2006 to describe young Japanese men who have little interest in sex, material possessions and social competition but have a keen interest in their appearance and latest fashion trends.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate to consider the young "elegant" Chinese men as soushokukei because they share so many similarities.

The word soushokukei in Japan is not necessarily seen as a negative term among young Japanese men. While many young Japanese men believe that becoming a "herbivore" means being released from traditional Japanese masculinity - the typical image of men during Japan's military history in the early 19th century and the rapid economic development in the post-World War II era - Japanese society has serious concerns about their social role.

A professor of Sociology at Tokyo's Chuo University has said that Japanese women wish to marry men who earn at least 6 million yen ($72,000) a year, even though such men make up only 3.5 percent of the eligible bachelors in Japan. Besides, most of the herbivorous men, who have little interest in social status and intimate relationships, do not fall in this category. The result of such unrealistic female expectations is a generation of men (and women), who may never marry and have children.

There are societal factors behind the emergence of herbivorous men. A joint online survey in 2009 showed how women view young Chinese men: More than 80 percent of young Chinese women think their male counterparts have become weaker and more gender neutral than before; 40 percent of the women consider their male colleagues smart and ambitious; and only 20 percent find the men masculine. Similar to Japan's experiences, China is seeing the rise of gender-neutral herbivorous men.