Shares of Japanese packaged food producer Warabeya Nichiyo Holdings dropped as much as 8.6% on Monday, the most in ten months, after apologizing for the alleged discovery of a cockroach in one of their onigiri rice-balls.
Seven & i Holdings¡¯s Japan subsidiary also published an apology. Its shares fell as much as 1.1% at the open before recovering to trade slightly higher and in line with the broader market.
Warabeya trimmed its loss to 4.5% at 11:30 a.m. in Tokyo. The company said it is recalling all relevant goods from the factory in Omiya where the food was produced, according to a press release.
The stock market action followed a video that went viral Friday with footage of a rice-ball that appeared to contain a cockroach at a Seven Eleven convenience store.
Warabeya mainly produces boxed lunches, ready-to-eat flavored rice-balls and snack pastries. Seven Eleven Japan contributes a majority of the companies total sales, according to company filings.
While Japan is widely known for its cleanliness, there have been a number of high-profile cases of food contamination over the years that have shocked the nation.
Earlier this year, conveyor-belt sushi restaurants were scrambling to control the narrative around the ¡°sushi terrorism¡± phenomenon, in which customers recorded themselves committing unhygienic acts such as licking soy sauce containers and other communal items.
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