In high school, I lived with a lovely Japanese girl named Yuka Kanno - that's her on the left! After every break, she would return to school, bringing me a variety of cloying Japanese delights. I would gobble them up with curiousity and excitement, wondering what the strange paste was inside that tender puff. Never once did I stop to consider if the treats were tainted. Now...I wonder. Akafuku, a popular confectioner, has been exposed for lying about the contents of its products, and also for falsifying expiration dates and recycling ingredients. The company's main store is located in Ise - home to the Ise Shrine, a nearly two-thousand year old Shinto monument. Japan is said to be a gift-giving culture, suggesting that travellers returning home bring special treats for their friends and family, just like Yuka did for me. Akafuku was a major supplier of such sweets, their most popular being red bean cakes and mochi. For many Japanese, visiting the Ise Shrine is a sort of religious duty to be performed in one's lifetime. Akafuku began business in 1707, during a boom of pilgrims to Ise, targeting visitors to the Shrine. Since then, modern transportation has allowed a great deal more visitors to travel to Ise and Akafuku's sales have benefited.It is disgusting to think that the company would pedal tainted products to tourists, or anyone for that matter. It is even more disgusting to think that I may have sampled such sweets. My skin crawls. Akafuku is now indefinitely closed, and I have to wonder how long they've been employing questionable practices. Before I bite into my next mochi, I'll definitely be checking the package.
Tully High School coach Jim 
