Kobe ekiben store sells JCG collaboration product: Emergency call “118” at sea

　Awajiya, an ekiben store in Kobe (3 Uozaki Minamimachi, Higashinada-ku, Kobe; tel 078-431-1682) will start selling a collaborative product with the Japan Coast Guard on January 7, “Moshi moshi wa 118 hanpidako meshi” (rice with a hooked octopus).

A mobile rescue officer goes to the rescue of an octopus from a helicopter.

　Hippippippadako Meshi” is a popular ekiben developed to commemorate the opening of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge connecting Kobe/Akashi and Awaji Island in April 1998. The company has developed a variety of collaborative products, and this product was released in January of last year as the first collaboration with the Japan Coast Guard.

　The number “118” is a marine emergency call number, and the Japan Coast Guard has designated January 18 as “118 Day” every year.

　Yuki Yanagimoto, vice president of Awajiya, says, “More than 20 years have passed since the number was first used and more than 10 years have passed since it was established, but public awareness of the number is still low, and I hear that 99% of the calls are ineffective because of mistakes, silence, and immediate refusals.

　The collaboration with the Japan Coast Guard is intended to further increase public awareness of the “118” call.

　For the second collaboration, the product’s wrapping paper and takotsubo (octopus jar)-style container have been redesigned. The blue ceramicware is reminiscent of the ocean, and depicts a mobile rescue team member going to rescue an octopus from a helicopter. The hanging paper reads, “Call 118 for ‘incidents and accidents’ at sea,” and features an illustration of a Japan Coast Guard diver encountering an octopus in the ocean.

　The contents include not only an octopus, but also a squid, which is a common inhabitant of the sea under the jurisdiction of the 5th Regional Coast Guard Headquarters in Kobe.

　The price is 1,300 yen. The company plans to sell 20,000 units. The product will be sold at Awajiya stores, and the company’s online store will also handle local delivery.