Have a Break

When I visited Tokyo early this year, I was looking forward to having a ‘chicken lunchbox’ on the bullet train on the way home.
I had seen an exhibition at the Railway Museum about ekiben from all over Japan and was attracted by their retro packaging, and had always wanted to try it.

The pop, retro packaging catches the eye.

The chicken bento contains chicken rice and fried chicken, and is all about chicken.

The ‘chicken bento’ has a long history and has been on sale since 1964.
It is a long-selling product that has been loved for many years, and the taste is needless to say very tasty. If I ever have the chance to visit Tokyo again, I will definitely buy it.

The eye-catching ‘chicken bento’ logo on an orange checkered background is a registered trade mark for ‘box lunch containing a chicken daily dish’ (Japanese Registration No. 6215958).
(Sakuramochi)

　The abien BREAD GRILL is a single-slice toaster that grills bread between the top and bottom plates. It is a new product developed by Abien, famous for its ‘Magic Grill’ (hot plate). From December 2023 to February 2024, the support purchase project has been listed on the crowdfunding management website Makuake..

https://www.makuake.com/project/abien_bread_grill/ (Japanese only)

　The other day, one of our supporters received the goods at my home. The central part of the front of the lid is marked with the word ‘abien’

　Switch on the power and turn the mode selection dial to select the cooking mode QUICK/LOW/HI to preheat the plate. When the preheat complete lamp illuminates, place the bread on the bottom plate, close the lid and press the start button to start baking. When baking is complete and the buzzer sounds, open the lid.

(L:Before baking , R:After baking)

　The bread is baked with both sides in contact with the top and bottom plates, so both sides are baked evenly. As there is no wasted space around the plates, the heat of the plate is efficiently transferred to the bread, it keeps the moisture out. The spring force holding the top and bottom plates together is not too strong, so it keeps the bread fluffy accordingly, without crushing it excessively. The top and bottom plates can be removed and washed in water, making them easy to clean.
　The trademarks ‘abien BREAD GRILL’ and ‘アビエン　ブレッドグリル’ are pending registration (Japanese Application 2023-132897, 2023-132898). (Conan)

(Reference: Trademark URL)
https://www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp/c1801/TR/JP-2023-132897/40/en
https://www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp/c1801/TR/JP-2023-132898/40/en

It was time to replace the preserved food in the emergency bags stockpiled in the firm and I received three types of canned soft bread that reached their expiry date.

These foods can be stored for up to five years, and I eat them while feeling thankful that I have a rolling stock of them without being hit by a disaster.
I started with the egg-free plain, opened the pull-top can and put it out on a plate. It looks like a vertical cupcake.

They were moist, soft and slightly sweet, so I was able to enjoy eating them.
My family also liked them. They are filling and if eaten with preserved water, they will make you feel fuller.

Being able to eat the can as soon as it is opened is a big advantage, but empty cans have concern that they become disaster waste. The paper label could be removed cleanly, which is a good point for easy sorting.

The ‘AST 新・食・缶ベーカリー’ on the paper label is a Japanese registered trademark (No. 5610551).
The emergency bag stockpiled is an emergency backpack with 30 items purchased from Disaster Prevention and Crime Prevention Direct, which won the Good Design Award 2012. ‘防災防犯ダイレクト’ is also a Japanese registered trademark (No. 6423555).
In order to avoid stockpiles becoming unusable, it is important to check the expiry dates of not only foodstuffs, but also equipment.

Later on, I also enjoyed the orange-flavoured canned soft bread with orange peel. I am looking forward to eating the brown sugar canned soft bread as I haven’t had it yet. One tin of canned soft bread has the calories equivalent to about two rice balls, so it is probably best to have it for breakfast or lunch rather than as a snack♪(Cacao)

Canned soft bread 24 cans |Professional Disaster Prevention Shop for Earthquake Preparedness (Japanese only)
Emergency backpack with 30 items |Professional Disaster Prevention Shop for Earthquake Preparedness (Japanese only)

　I often see companies that are celebrating their “100th anniversary”, but I rarely see companies that are celebrating their “200th” or “300th anniversary”. The company I would like to introduce this time, Castella Honke Fukusaya, will celebrate its 400th anniversary in 2024.

　In 1624, the year of the company’s foundation, the Tokugawa Shogunate banned the arrival of Spanish ships and broke off diplomatic relations with Spain. That was a long time ago.
　At the time of its foundation, the company was dealing in sugar and rice, but it started making castella and other Nanban confectionery, which was handed down from the Portuguese. At present, it mainly sells castella cake.

　The other day I bought a lovely castella cake called ‘Fukusaya Cube’. The small cube-shaped box contains two slices of castella cake and is just the right size to eat up in one sitting. The box pattern is seasonally adapted to match the season, making it a limited edition seasonal product.

　According to my research, these castella cakes are made from start to finish by a one baker and are additive-free. The taste is elegantly sweet and it is ideal for giving away individually.

　Since the 12th generation of Seitaro in the Meiji era, the company has held an annual ‘egg memorial service’ in May every year to thank the eggs and make an offering to them, as well as to teach them to treat things with care and to pray for the health of their employees and the development of the company’s business. I felt that the company has continued to be a long-established business for 400 years because it has always maintained this kind of sincere attitude.
(Time)

Registered trademark: フクサヤキューブ＼FUKUSAYACUBE
Japanese Registration number: No. 5385297
Date of registration: 21 January 2011
Right Holder: Castella Honke Fukusaya Co.
(J-PlatPat)
https://www.j-platpat.inpit.go.jp/c1801/TR/JP-2010-051409/40/en

　The other day, I received a tax return gift from a municipality in Fukuoka Prefecture to which I donated last year. They are “Hakata Amaou” strawberries.

　My children were delighted with the bright red, large strawberries. They ate them in no time.
　The name “Amaou” is said to stand for the initial letters of the words “red, round, large, and delicious,” which represent the characteristics of this strawberry (variety), as well as a wish that it will become the king of sweet strawberries.

　“Hakata Amaou” is the brand name used by the JA Group in Fukuoka Prefecture for sales, and is registered as a trademark (Japanese Trademark Registration No. 5042710) for “fruits” and other designated products. “Amaou” was also registered as a trademark for the designated goods such as fruits before “Hakata Amaou” (Japanese Trademark Registration No. 4615573).
　Under the Trademark Law, the name of the variety cannot be registered as a trademark, but in the case of “Amaou,” the application for variety registration was filed before the product name was decided, so the variety name (“Fukuoka S6”) and the product name (“Amaou”) were different, and as a result, “Amaou” could be registered as a trademark and the brand could be improved. This resulted in the registration of “Amaou” as a trademark, and also led to brand enhancement (Hiro).

Hakata Amaou website
Amaou (Wikipedia: Japanese only)

The other day, I received some sweets with a rather unusual name. It is a souvenir from Ehime　Prefecture, and its name is “I~yokan shika shinai!”.

I~yokan shika shinai! is a flavorful madeleine filled with the peel and juice of Iyokan citrus produced in Ehime Prefecture, and is a product of Ichiroku Co., Ltd, a well-known confectionery in Shikoku and Ehime known for its Ichiroku Tart. I don’t think an explanation is necessary, but it is a combination of “Iyokan” and “iiyokan” which meaning good feeling.

Actually, I had known about this product for a long time and thought it was a bright and bold name. The fact that it is limited and emphasized with “shika(only)” is also good.

I was definitely going to buy it when I go on a trip to Ehime, but I realized that this is a great name for a souvenir that makes you feel happy when you receive it. Because I have only a good feeling about it!
Naming is very important. I have a feeling that something good will happen. (Syszo)

I~yokan shika shinai! is a registered trademark (J-PlatPat).
Would you like to protect your company’s important product or service name by registering it as a trademark?
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