114-Year-Old Japanese Producer Of Famed Sakuma’s Drops Candy Closing Down Due To Pandemic

[The_King]

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Photo: Flickr

Closure after 114 years in business

Founded in 1908, Sakumaseika had weathered through major historical events like World War II, which damaged its factories in Japan and China. Despite the ongoing war and risky air raids, it continued to produce its goods.

But the Tokyo-based company has announced that it will shut down next year on Jan 20, reportedly due to dismal sales brought about by the pandemic and rising operational costs. It had also hesitated to raise the price of its candy, due to a general Japanese market fear of losing customers.

A Sakumaseika spokesperson tells The Japan Times that the company had been struggling with raw material and energy costs, as well as challenges in hiring manpower. It suffered a net loss of ¥152mil (S$1.46mil) in its fiscal year that ended last September.

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Photo: YouTube

The company’s wartime resilience inspired famed animation studio Studio Ghibli to feature Sakuma’s Drops in its tragic war-themed film Grave of the Fireflies. In the 1988 tearjerker, the hard candy served as a source of comfort for two young orphaned siblings who had to survive on their own amidst food shortages and heavy bombing.

The sweets became so iconic after the film’s release that the company released special Fireflies-themed tins for the candy (though some netizens have since confessed that they could not enjoy the drops without crying).

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Photo: Japan Candy Store

But you can still buy a rival version of Sakuma’s Drops

While Sakumaseika is closing for good, it appears that Sakuma’s Drops will still live on. Its rival Sakuma Confectionery Co., which was founded by management that split from the original company, is very much active. It also makes a version of the hard candy, which is packaged in a green tin instead of red.

[socrates469bc]

and early this yr..........

 

[ODACHEK]

Moi bought one in Tokyo back in 2008 and kept the empty tin.

[chamfer]

Think still can find this at japanese supermarkets.

[The_King]

Buy one then sell when no longer in production