Inflation brings end to beloved

A beloved Japanese candy eaten by generations, so iconic it even appeared in a hit anime film, has come to the end of the line, a victim of surging raw material and energy prices. Tokyo-based Sakumaseika Co said on Wednesday that it would go out of business in January due to rising production costs, a labor shortage and a drop in sales of its main product "Sakuma's Drops." The discontinuation of its trademark candy – hard, colorful fruit drops sold in a red steel can – threw Japan into mourning. "We always had a can at home when I was in grade school," said 53-year-old sweets-shop owner Naoe Watanabe, remembering how he used to use a 10-yen coin to pop open the lid of the treat – a staple in corner candy shops for 114 years.