TOKYO — A Japanese comfort retailer chain has pulled its handmade rice balls, also referred to as onigiri, from cabinets after workers have been caught faking expiration dates.
Ministop, which has greater than 1,800 shops throughout Japan, mentioned it was conducting an “emergency investigation” in any respect of its shops after discovering that workers at some areas had incorrectly labeled the expiration dates for the rice balls, that are ready in-store.
Manufacturing of handmade rice balls and bento bins has been suspended since Aug. 9, the corporate mentioned in a press release Monday.
It mentioned it had to this point confirmed that workers at 23 areas nationwide had engaged in “gross sales strategies that deviated from our product manufacturing regulation.”
Merchandise that ought to have been promptly labeled with expiration dates after being ready in retailer kitchens “have been left with none labels for a size of time with the intention to prolong the expiration interval,” it mentioned, whereas merchandise already on show “have been relabeled with expiration dates.”
Ministop mentioned it had reported the 23 shops to the well being division and that it might “proceed to conduct inspections, examine the causes of those incidents and make each effort to forestall a recurrence.”
No clients have reported any associated well being points, the corporate mentioned.
“We sincerely apologize for the numerous inconvenience brought about to our clients,” it mentioned.
Onigiri, a staple of Japanese meals tradition, is usually full of grilled salmon, beef or pickled plum and wrapped in crispy seaweed. It’s a in style merchandise in Japan, the place comfort shops akin to Ministop, often called konbini, are a lifeline for purchasers looking for contemporary to-go meals.
Arata Yamamoto reported from Tokyo, and Chelsea Chan reported from Hong Kong.
