Family Mart Designed Cute Teary-Eyed Stickers to Combat Food Loss

Japan’s convenience giant Family Mart slapped teary-eyed “help us” stickers on almost-expiring snacks—onigiri, bread, ham, salmon, cake—pairing them with small discounts to tackle food waste, aiming to cut around 3,000 tons a year. The rollout is cute, but the comments went full courtroom. Some readers swooned over the empathy play, while others accused the company of guilt-tripping shoppers for its own over-ordering. GaryBluto wondered if anyone actually feels bad for “cartoons of crying food,” and PeterHolzwarth fumed that management is shifting forecasting fails onto customers’ consciences. The line between “aww” and “ugh” has never been thinner.

Pragmatists pulled out their calculators. “The only sticker they needed was a discount,” joked cadamsdotcom, igniting threads demanding 35–50% markdowns. Then came the Dutch flex: jsiepkes says the Netherlands has had similar “don’t throw me away” stickers for years—with a hefty 35% off—and it works. Cue memes: “adopt-an-onigiri,” “save the sad salmon,” and “crying cake staring into your soul.” Despite the snark, many admit the combo of cute guilt + lower price is a clever nudge, especially since Family Mart is giving the stickers away for anyone to use. Whether it’s heartstrings or wallet strings, the comments agree on one thing: if the sticker’s weeping, the price better drop.