Japan is famous for vending machines. While most sell soft drinks and coffee, there are some unusual ones selling batteries, umbrellas, and bottles of sake. Add insects to that list.
In Japanese, the word 昆虫食 (konchuushoku) means “insect eating”.
During the past few years, it seems, there has been an increasing number of vending machines selling insect snacks. Keep in mind, these types of vending machines are still are a rarity and there does appear to only be a handful across the country.
But they do exist in a variety of locations, including Nakano Broadway in Tokyo, Akihabara, Sakai in Osaka, Fukuoka, and more.
These snacks are rather expensive, with a can of Armor Tail Scorpion costing 1,500 yen ($14.10) and Zebra Tarantula reaching 2,600 yen ($24.45). You can get bug kebabs, crickets, and rhino beetles, as well as more, perhaps, palatable chocolate-covered grasshoppers.
YouTubers have been doing tastings.
Yum!
(YouTuber Katsumata Museum did not seem to enjoy this can of bugs, calling eating it “truly a batsu game.”)
This YouTuber, however, said eating his bug was, “Enjoyable.”
This YouTuber added different condiments.
Recently, a handful of bugs-as-food books have been released in Japan, so this does seem to be a trend of some sort—albeit as of now, a minor one!