Overview
- Calbee said it will temporarily switch 14 products to black-and-white packaging to keep goods on shelves, with the redesigned bags reaching stores from May 25.
- The company described the move as a response to constraints on packaging materials, which local reporting ties to a naphtha crunch that limits resins and solvents for color ink.
- Naphtha is a petroleum feedstock used to make printing-ink components as well as plastics, packaging and adhesives, so tight supply can ripple through many consumer goods.
- Deputy chief cabinet secretary Kei Sato said there is no immediate nationwide shortage and noted that about 40% of Japan’s naphtha comes from the Middle East with a similar share produced domestically, and The Straits Times reported imports from outside the Middle East tripled in May.
- Japanese firms are adapting in different ways, with Itoham Yonekyu cutting packaging colors, Panasonic and Toto warning of cost and delivery pressure, and a trade group survey finding most consumer brands expect price hikes or product changes if naphtha strains persist.