Individually-plastic-packaged fruit and veg in Japanese grocery stores’ produce sections might be one large difference in how many things some people might find themselves cutting through per day.
Japan has never gotten on board with the whole “waste reduction” thing.
No, but they're a lot better about recycling than America is. America doesn't even recycle much any more; we used to pack stuff up in containers and ship it back to China, but now China won't take it, so it's either being piled up, or landfilled. Japan actually recycles its own trash.
From my understand, Japan pretty much only recycles anything that doesn't burn, which doesn't include the vast majority of the excessive amount of plastic packaging and plastic bags the country throws at you.
Japan has never gotten on board with the whole “waste reduction” thing.