Advertisement
Japan
This Week in AsiaLifestyle & Culture

Is this Japan’s weirdest mascot? Meet Hokkaido’s Zushihocky, part rice, part clam

  • He regularly makes small children cry, but that didn’t stop Hokuto’s mascot from winning the title of ‘most unforgettable’ official character
  • The mascot’s strange appearance is a nod to two local products: Fukkurinko rice and hokki-gai clams

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
0
Unforgettable: Zushihocky. Photo: Facebook
Julian Ryall
A town mascot that is an unlikely combination of sushi rice and a clam has won the title of Japan’s “most unforgettable” official character.

Zushihocky was created to represent the town of Hokuto, Hokkaido, in 2013, since when the character has consistently turned heads due to its bizarre appearance.

Startlingly white, with an outsize head atop a lumpy body that represents the rice, Zushihocky has long, gangly arms and legs and a disconcerting smile.

Local officials have admitted that Zushihocky regularly makes small children cry during appearances at promotional events. The creature has its own page on the city’s website and has starred in a series of YouTube videos.

But while the mascot has not always been a hit with the children, Zushihocky proved more popular with the judges of the competition for most unforgettable character, an event organised by Wavedash Co., a Tokyo-based website management company that promotes local communities.

“Zushihocky first appeared seven years ago and is a design that brings together two of our local products: local Fukkurinko rice and ‘hokki-gai’ clams,” said Takahiro Nishiyama, of the city’s planning division.

Advertisement