What is sushi terrorism? Japanese chain Sushiro sues viral meals vandal
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apan’s greatest conveyor belt sushi chain is seeking to sue for damages after a video of a teenage boy licking a soy sauce bottle and wiping saliva on food went viral.
Sushiro has filed a swimsuit value £383,280 with a courtroom in Osaka arguing the so-called “sushi terrorism” development had led to it dropping enterprise.
Police in Japan arrested three people on suspicion of forcible obstruction of enterprise again in March. Their reported movies on TikTok and Instagram led to clients elevating considerations over meals hygiene.
Kura Sushi, one other chain, has additionally skilled dangerous behaviour in its shops – and was the placement the place a youngster was filmed licking a soy sauce bottle after which wiping saliva on meals that was doing the rounds on a conveyor belt.
But it’s Sushiro that’s seeking to sue, in line with the Kyodo news company, and will declare an extra £500,000 after forking out on additional hygiene measures.
This is the story up to now of a development that’s worrying one among Japan’s culinary touchstones.
How did the sushi prank originate?
At the start of 2023, three arrests had been made in Japan after pranksters launched movies of themselves on social media that confirmed them tampering with meals at sushi restaurants.
This included them licking gadgets, ingesting immediately from communal soy sauce bottles, and chewing sushi gadgets earlier than placing them again on a conveyor belt for public consumption.
The novelty of the conveyor belt system is a part of the attraction however the mechanism does depart the sushi to be unguarded in opposition to potential crimes in opposition to hygiene.
Businesses have toyed with the prospect of introducing desk service – nonetheless, eating places would then don’t have anything to supply past normal sushi eateries.
What has been mentioned?
Hiroyuki Okamoto, of the Kura Sushi chain, mentioned earlier this yr: “Our company has been hearing from a large number of customers who tell us they no longer trust or want to go to conveyor belt sushi restaurants.
“This is a crisis not only for our stores but for the entire conveyor belt sushi industry.”
It has been reported that {the teenager} has admitted to licking gadgets however has expressed regret and his attorneys have argued he isn’t solely responsible for Sushiro’s lack of enterprise. The lawyer added that the boy didn’t anticipate the video to go viral.