Hello everyone~! This is Saori from Japanese Snacks Republic!

This time! Let’s take a closer look at the mascot character of that snack you’ve surely checked out or eaten before! Hidden in its name is an unexpected but straightforward wish...... here’s the character in question!

【Jagariko】Did You Know There Are Multiple Characters!?
The Hidden Wish Behind Jagariko’s Mascot Character, Jagao!

The mascot character of Jagariko, Japan’s beloved potato stick snack!
That giraffe you see on the package...... is actually part of a huge family!!

Jagariko has been soaring in popularity not just in Japan but overseas too! It’s an easy-to-eat, bite-sized potato stick snack that ambitiously releases more than 10 limited-time flavors each year! Whether it’s hot or cold, it’s a perfectly balanced snack, and what makes it special is that the package always features a giraffe character themed after the flavor!

Did you know each flavor has its own character in charge!?
The mascot character Jagao is actually part of a big family!

The giraffe character, Jagao, drawn on the package is actually part of a large family, with different members in charge of each flavor! (Not the limited-time flavors, but the standard flavors you can always buy throughout the year are assigned to different members of Jagao’s family!)

Why is he called Jagao...... or rather, why is the character a giraffe at all?

Actually, Calbee, the company behind Jagariko, already had a senior snack called ‘Kappa Ebisen.’ Its catchphrase is ‘Can’t stop, won’t stop,’ so to avoid overlapping, Jagariko went with ‘Once you start eating, you won’t stop (kirinai),’ which is a wordplay with ‘kirin’ (giraffe). That’s why they adopted a giraffe as the mascot character!

It’s a Japanese wordplay, but the true meaning is that, following in the footsteps of its senior snack ‘Kappa Ebisen,’ the creators wished for Jagariko to be a snack loved by many for years to come. Just as they hoped, Jagariko is delicious, always offers a wide variety of seasonal limited flavors, and continues to satisfy our little hunger pangs...... thank you, Jagariko!

Looking into it, I realized many snack characters might have hidden secrets too......! So everyone, next time you eat a familiar snack, pay attention to its mascot character as well!