Middle East conflict causes ink shortage, Japanese Calbee potato chips switch to black and white packaging

According to Golden Ten Data on May 12, the ongoing Middle East conflict has caused an ink shortage, forcing Japan’s largest potato chip manufacturer to downgrade its packaging quality—another sign that raw material shortages are intensifying and impacting global markets. Tokyo-based snack company Calbee announced on Tuesday that it will temporarily adjust the packaging design of some of its most popular products, using only two ink colors. These products include potato chips, prawn crackers, and fruit granola.