Creamy cans

The Metal Packaging Manufacturers Association’s Twitter brought to my attention an interesting Japanese product last week. Sora News 24 reported on a canned vending machine find in the form of Gaku’s ‘Namakuri’, which is short for ‘Nama Cream’ or ‘Fresh Cream’.

The Japanese company Gaku, which operates of a chain of specialty parfait and risotto stores in Hokkaido and Tokyo, reportedly went ‘viral’ last year with its canned dessert offerings, sparking a new trend.

The usual problem with canned products like these is not being able to see the product inside, however Gaku’s cans feature an optical illusion on the can body, with life-like decoration giving the appearance of see-through packaging and thick, fresh cream inside.

The Namakuri product is not cheap, with each 330ml (11oz) can costing 780 yen (US$6.06), which, according to Sora News 24, is about seven times more expensive than a regular vending machine beverage. But I suppose all well and good if people are willing to pay for a unique dessert experience.

It may be a while until this trend catches on in the UK, but it has huge potential for novelty markets, and I expect with the Queen’s Jubilee coming up we could be seeing a few more of these. Look out for next week’s blog where I’ll be adding a rundown of some Platinum Jubilee metal packaging.

• Alex Rivers (she/her), CanTech International editor
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