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Snack giant Calbee switches to black and white packaging as Iran war hits ink supplies

BBC News · · 431 words · By Osmond Chia
open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78k405j8pdo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

fact_checkFact-Check Results

12 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 6
verified Verified By Reference 2
schedule Pending 2
cancel Disputed 1
help Insufficient Evidence 1
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“Japanese snack giant Calbee says it will temporarily switch to black and white packaging for some its best-known products as supplies of an ingredient used in ink have been disrupted by the Iran war.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent news sources (The Guardian, Straits Times, and others via web search) confirm Calbee is switching to black and white packaging due to ink ingredient (naphtha) disruptions caused by the Iran war.
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web search NEUTRAL — Calbee to switch its brightly coloured packaging to black and white because war has disrupted supply of certain raw materials used in ink.The move to black and white was forced on Calbee by disrupted …
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/12/calbee-japan-s…
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web search NEUTRAL — "This measure is intended to help maintain a stable supply of products," said Calbee. Oil and gas prices have surged since the conflict started on 28 February as shipments through the Strait of Hormuz…
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c78k405j8pdo
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web search NEUTRAL — Japanese snack giant Calbee says it will temporarily switch to black and white packaging for some its best-known products as supplies of an ingredient used in ink have been disrupted by the Iran war.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78k405j8pdo
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“The firm says new-style packets for 14 of its products, including crisps and prawn crackers, will start to appear in shops in Japan from 25 May.”
CORROBORATED
CNN and other web sources specifically confirm that 14 products will be affected and the new packaging rolls out on May 25.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Jagarico is a family of salty snack products made primarily from processed fried potatoes. Introduced in 1995 by Calbee, Jagarico could be described as rod-shaped potato chips. According to Barabara Z…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jagarico
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Calbee, Inc. (カルビー株式会社, Karubī Kabushiki-gaisha) is a Japanese snack food maker. It was founded on 30 April 1949, and its headquarters are located in the Marunouchi Trust Tower Main in Marunouchi, Chi…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calbee
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Honey Butter Chips (Korean: 허니버터칩) is a brand of fried potato chips manufactured by Haitai Calbee and sold in South Korea. The snacks were first made available in August 2014, and they are renowned fo…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey_Butter_Chips
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
“Iran effectively closed the key Strait of Hormuz waterway in retaliation for US and Israeli strikes on the country.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia entries for '2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis' and '2026 Strait of Hormuz campaign' explicitly state that Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz in response to US and Israeli attacks.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 19 March 2026, the United States began an aerial campaign against Iranian targets to reopen the Strait of Hormuz following its closure by Iran in response to the attacks by the United States and Is…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Strait_of_Hormuz_campaign
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a major maritime choke point for world energy trade, has been largely blocked by Iran since 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel launched …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Strait_of_Hormuz_crisis
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 13 April 2026, the United States imposed a naval blockade on Iran following the failure of the Islamabad Talks to end the 2026 Iran war. The US military said the blockade had begun on Monday, 13 Ap…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States_naval_block…
+ 4 more evidence sources
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“Oil and gas prices have surged since the conflict started on 28 February as shipments through the Strait of Hormuz halted.”
CORROBORATED
Wikipedia and multiple news reports (Bloomberg, etc.) confirm the conflict started on February 28, 2026, and that oil/gas prices surged as shipments through the Strait of Hormuz were halted.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Strait of Hormuz () is a waterway between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. On the north coast lies Iran, and on the south coast lies the Musandam Peninsula under the Musandam Governorate of …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Hormuz
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 19 March 2026, the United States began an aerial campaign against Iranian targets to reopen the Strait of Hormuz following its closure by Iran in response to the attacks by the United States and Is…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Strait_of_Hormuz_campaign
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a major maritime choke point for world energy trade, has been largely blocked by Iran since 28 February 2026, when the United States and Israel launched …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Strait_of_Hormuz_crisis
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Supplies of naphtha, a byproduct of oil refining used in ink and plastics, have also been hit hard.”
CORROBORATED
Confirmed by The Guardian and NBC Washington that naphtha supplies (used in ink and plastics/medical supplies) have been disrupted.
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cross reference SUPPORTS — The move to black and white was forced on Calbee by disrupted supplies of naptha, an ink ingredient derived from petroleum.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/12/calbee-japan-s…
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cross reference SUPPORTS — War-related shortfalls of naphtha have raised concerns about industrial disruption and shortages of medical supplies such as IV bags and syringes
https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/national-international/ir…
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“Naphtha prices in Asia have almost doubled since the conflict started”
DISPUTED
While some sources mention price increases due to the crisis, Nikkei Asia explicitly reports that Asian naphtha prices dropped nearly 50% in 6 months since March, contradicting the claim that they 'almost doubled'.
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web search NEUTRAL — TOKYO -- The price of naphtha has plunged by almost half in Asia since March amid declining crude oil costs and China's economic slowdown.Like gasolin.
https://asia.nikkei.com/business/markets/commodities/asian-n…
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web search NEUTRAL — Today’s price changes in the global petrochemical industry with Shreyal Dhume. The Polymerupdate daily petrochemical news and price assessments are based on information gathered from a cross-section o…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbI5TUYwqwM
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web search NEUTRAL — Naphtha prices in the US strengthened through March as a succession of logistics disruptions and robust downstream consumption tightened available barrels. Early March saw Strait of Hormuz closures pu…
https://www.chemanalyst.com/NewsAndDeals/NewsDetails/us-naph…
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“Before the war, around 40% of Japan's naphtha was imported from the Middle East, Japan's deputy chief cabinet secretary Kei Sato told reporters on Tuesday.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple news sources (The Straits Times and others) report that Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kei Sato stated approximately 40% of Japan's naphtha was imported from the Middle East before the war.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Christianity, which originated in the Middle East during the 1st century AD, is a significant minority religion within the region, characterized by the diversity of its beliefs and traditions, compare…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_the_Middle_Eas…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle East, or the Near East, was one of the cradles of civilization: after the Neolithic Revolution and the adoption of agriculture, many of the world's oldest cultures and civilizations were cr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Middle_East
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Middle East is a geo-political region that is generally defined as encompassing all of Egypt and all of West Asia except for the Caucasus. It roughly corresponds with what was historically referre…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_East
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
“In April, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the country was broadening its supply of naphtha to include more sources outside the Middle East, such as the US.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia confirms Sanae Takaichi has been Prime Minister since October 2025. Bloomberg and other web sources confirm her April statement regarding diversifying naphtha sources to include the US.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The prime minister of Japan is the country's head of government and the leader of the Cabinet. This is a list of prime ministers of Japan, from when the first Japanese prime minister (in the modern se…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_prime_ministers_of_Jap…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is the list of international prime ministerial trips made by Sanae Takaichi, who has served as Prime Minister of Japan since 21 October 2025. Sanae Takaichi has made 5 international trips to 6 co…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_international_prime_mi…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Sanae Takaichi (高市 早苗, Takaichi Sanae; born 7 March 1961) is a Japanese politician who has been Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) since October 2025. She is t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanae_Takaichi
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“On 1 May, Japanese foodmaker Mizkan, which makes a popular fermented soybean snack, suspended sales of some of its products and raised prices for others due to a shortage of polystyrene containers.”
CORROBORATED
The Straits Times and other web sources confirm that on May 1, Mizkan suspended sales of some products and raised prices due to polystyrene container shortages.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — On 1 May, Japanese foodmaker Mizkan, which makes a popular fermented soybean snack, suspended sales of some of its products and raised prices for others due to a shortage of polystyrene containers.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78k405j8pdo
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — On 1 May, Japanese foodmaker Mizkan, which makes a popular fermented soybean snack, suspended sales of some of its products and raised prices for others due to a shortage of polystyrene containers.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c78k405j8pdo
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Foodmaker Mizkan, which produces natto (fermented soybean) that is a daily staple in Japanese diets, on May 1 suspended sales of four products and raised prices by up to 20 per cent for others, due to…
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/japans-iconic-ca…
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“car makers like Toyota and Hyundai have said their profits have been hit due to higher costs of materials and lower sales.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to confirm or deny the claims regarding Toyota and Hyundai's profits in this specific context.
schedule
“many airlines have paused flights and grounded some planes after jet fuel prices surged due to the war.”
PENDING
schedule
“Last week, UK-based fashion chain Next raised its prices by up to 8% in some countries outside Europe due to higher fuel prices and disruption to global supply chains.”
PENDING
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.