Naphtha Shock Hits Natto, Diapers, and Toilet Paper as Government Says 'We Have Enough'

Why This Topic Landed in Japan

This is the day-two surge of the naphtha story, and it landed because the price-hike wave shifted from snack-bag packaging to staples that every household buys weekly: natto, laundry detergent, baby diapers, and toilet paper. With major brands lining up the same "summer 2026" timing, commenters connected the dots into a single "naphtha shock" narrative. The contrast with the government's repeated reassurance that "necessary supply is secured" is what gave the story emotional weight — people experience the price tags directly while only hearing macro-level denials in return. TV Asahi's reported use of a black-and-white visual treatment for the naphtha segment (likely a mix-up with the separate "black-and-white packaging" story) added a media-criticism angle and meme material.

Key Reaction Themes

• Government distrust — Users argue the government is counting already-processed plastic and pellets, while manufacturers are saying they lack the naphtha needed at the production stage.
• Suspicion of opportunistic pricing — A recurring theme is "they will never lower the prices once they're up." The naphtha shortage is read as a convenient cover.
• Black-and-white TV jokes — Comments mock the supposed monochrome broadcast as either an accident, performance art, or an argument to keep TV Asahi monochrome permanently.
• Awareness that everything uses oil — Replies push back on the early hope that toilet paper would be safe, noting transportation and manufacturing both consume petroleum products.
• Gallows humor — One-liners like "naphtha is what makes hair grow, so we're all going bald" let users laugh off cumulative price fatigue.

What Japanese Netizens Are Saying

• "🦎 (the government): 'There's plenty, you idiots! 😡'"
• "The state says it's fine, but somehow everything's going up — they're just using it as an excuse to raise prices."
• "What the government counts as 'naphtha' includes already-processed plastic and pellets. Manufacturers are saying they don't have the naphtha they actually need to produce things."
• "Okame Natto and others to raise prices by 15% from summer 2026 due to raw-material costs."
• "Whatever happened to 'toilet paper has nothing to do with oil so it won't go up'? Turns out it's an oil product after all."
• "There's no factory that doesn't use oil. Just moving stuff around uses oil."
• "(On the monochrome broadcast) Wasn't that just a broadcast accident? Doing it half-heartedly is the worst."
• "Naphtha is the source of luscious hair. A shortage means baldness is going to spread."
• "TV Asahi can stay black-and-white forever, that's fine with us."
• "Why don't they just stop broadcasting? It's a waste of oil anyway."
• "The Japanese government lied to us again!"
• "Unicharm and Daio Paper to raise diaper prices from summer 2026 — raw-material costs."
• "Kao to hike Attack detergent prices from summer 2026."
• "And of course, they will never bring the prices back down."