Iran war forces Japanese snack giant to go monochrome

Oil supply disruptions amid the Iran conflict are affecting a wider range of businesses, Japanese Calbee, the country’s largest potato chip producer, announced it would temporarily switch to a black-and-white palette for several of its products, Reuters reported.

Reportedly, new package versions for 14 products will hit shelves on May 25. The company’s move aims to preserve a reliable product supply flow despite disruptions caused by the conflict in the Middle East.

According to Reuters, Japan relies on imports of naphtha — required for ink production — from the Middle East for about 40% of its consumption.

Separately, in late March, Japanese oil company INPEX Corp. signaled its readiness to redirect part of its oil production in Central Asia to the domestic market to strengthen the country’s energy security.