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Calbee goes monochrome
Japan’s snack maker Calbee said it is switching packaging for 14 products to black-and-white because ink ingredient shortages are being caused by the war in Iran and the strait of Hormuz blockade.
“14 of its products would switch to monochrome branding by the end of May”
The Guardian reported that Calbee’s move was forced by disrupted supplies of naphtha, described as an ink ingredient derived from petroleum, and that the switch would take effect by the end of May.
NPR said the change will start May 25 and will limit ink colors to just two, while Calbee said what is inside the packs remains the same.
NPR also described Calbee’s lightly salted chips, known as "usu shio," as originally sold in a bright-orange bag with an image of yellow chips and a potato-man mascot wearing a hat, before the new monochrome lettering.
Government reassures supply
Reuters coverage in The Guardian said a government spokesperson told the public that domestic naphtha refining continued using stockpiled crude oil, while imports from outside the Middle East have tripled in May compared with levels from before the Iran war broke out in late February.
The Guardian quoted Kei Sato, a senior government spokesperson, saying, “Adequate supplies of the naphtha ink ingredient have been secured for important functions in Japan.”
Asked about Calbee’s decision, the same Reuters-linked account said Sato added, “We have not received any reports of immediate supply disruption for printing ink or naphtha.”
NPR similarly said Japan has so far ridden out worries relatively calmly as the government worked to allay such fears by noting the nation's oil reserves, while Calbee faced a squeeze on naphtha used in items like plastics and ink.
Broader ripple effects
The Guardian said European fashion retailers are facing fresh questions over supply chain oversight after a fire at a factory that supplied them killed at least 33 garment workers in Bangladesh, but it also framed Calbee’s packaging shift as part of a wider pattern of companies responding to rising costs and material shortages.
“Japan relies on imports from the Middle East for about 40% of its consumption”
In Calbee’s case, The Guardian said printing ink requires naphtha and that Japan relies on imports from the Middle East for about 40% of its consumption.
NPR reported that Calbee’s group employs more than 5,000 people and that the company said it was necessary to respond flexibly to changing geopolitical conditions, while the duration of the change remained unclear.
The Associated Press-linked account in عربي21 said Calbee told the Associated Press that the measure aims to help maintain the stability of product supplies, and that it remains unclear how long the change will last.