EXPLAINER

Tokyo-based Calbee says it would temporarily use only black and white colours on 14 of its products due to a lack of supplies needed for printing ink.

The US-Israeli war on Iran is draining the colour from Japan’s supermarket shelves, with the biggest crisp makers swapping once-vibrant packaging for monochrome as a result of a shortage of ink.

Tokyo-based Calbee, one of the most popular brands in the snack market, has said it will – at least temporarily – switch to using black and white on the packaging of 14 of its products, including its Calbee Potato Chips.

Calbee is just one of many Japanese companies attempting to minimise the fallout from the faraway war in Iran, which has triggered a global supply shock. Since the end of February, when the war began, the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil is shipped during peacetime, has been effectively shut.

The closure of the strait has affected Japan, which imports 40 percent of its naphtha, an oil derivative needed to make printing ink, from the Middle East.

So, why is the Iran war driving up ink prices? And will crisp packets be colourful again?

What have Japanese companies said?

In a statement, Calbee said its decision to switch to black-and-white packaging was a response to “supply instability affecting certain raw materials amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East”.

“This measure is intended to help maintain a stable supply of products,” the company stated, adding that the new products would roll out on May 25.

Asked about Calbee’s move to simplify packaging to conserve materials, a government spokesperson said it was working to plug supply gaps and that imports ⁠⁠from countries outside the Middle East were three times higher this month compared with before the war broke out at the end of February.

“We have ⁠⁠not received any reports of immediate supply disruption for printing ink ⁠⁠or naphtha and recognise that Japan as a whole has secured the quantities required,” Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kei Sato said.

“Relevant ministries are working together and making efforts to communicate closely with impacted companies to grasp the situation,” he said, ‌‌adding that a fact-finding hearing would take place on Tuesday.

However, major ink and chemical producers have raised prices due to the volatility in oil and gas supplies from the Middle East.

US-based Sun Chemical, a major global producer of ink and related products, said rising raw-material, logistics and energy costs were forcing broad increases across product lines.

Another leading specialist in printing inks, Germany-based Hubergroup, also announced a hike in prices due to key components experiencing “substantial cost increases” because of supply constraints.

“The scale and persistence of the current cost pressures make price adjustments unavoidable,” it said.

Why have ink supplies dried up?

The shortages and price increases caused by the war have affected supplies of key ingredients used in coloured inks, prompting companies such as Calbee to simplify packaging to conserve materials. However, the knock-on effects extend beyond snacks.

Printing inks rely heavily on petrochemical feedstocks, including solvents and resins derived from naphtha, a crude oil by-product.

Naphtha is also used to produce plastics and synthetic rubber. It is essential for manufacturing high-octane petrol, and is an important industrial solvent used in paints and adhesives.

The US-Israeli war on Iran has severely disrupted shipping and energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas flow – and hence squeezing supplies of oil-derived materials used in manufacturing, such as naphtha.

The substantial volume of naphtha Japan imports from the Middle East makes Japanese manufacturers highly vulnerable to the security situation there.

Iran effectively blocked the strait after US-Israeli attacks began. The waterway remains blocked, despite a fragile ceasefire agreed to on April 8.

Since April 13, the US has enforced a widespread naval blockade of Iranian ports and ships in a bid to pressure Tehran to open the strait, after talks between Washington and Iran collapsed in Pakistan, with US forces ordered to stop or divert vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports.

What else is driving up ink prices?

Another key ingredient used in printing inks and coatings is nitrocellulose.

However, it is also used in military propellants and explosives, meaning defence demand can affect availability for commercial manufacturing.

Demand for nitrocellulose has intensified, especially in Europe, following increased NATO spending and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, further tightening availability for civilian industries such as printing inks and packaging.