Calbee (カルビー)

The name blends calcium and vitamin B1: Calbee was born in Hiroshima in 1949 with the stated aim of correcting post-war nutritional deficiencies. Its first hit, the 1964 Kappa Ebisen, is a puffed stick made with whole shrimp — a snack built from a resource Japan had in abundance.

The company now dominates the Japanese savoury aisle and exports a very local logic: regional and seasonal editions in permanent rotation, where Hokkaidō potato, Kōchi yuzu or Kyūshū chilli justify a packet on their own. It is the same cultural engine as limited-edition Kit Kats.