Shares prices of prominent Japanese restaurant chain Sushiro dropped by five percent after videos showing unhygienic pranks being pulled at their sushi conveyor belt outlets went viral.
In one video, apparently recorded at a Sushiro venue in the city of Gifu, a teenager licks the top part of a communal soy sauce bottle before taking a teacup off a nearby shelf, licking the cup’s rim and placing it back. The teenager can also be seen licking his finger and then using that finger to touch a slice of sushi moving past him on a conveyor belt.
Other similar videos appear to show customers putting wasabi on sushi that moves past them, licking the spoon in a communal green tea powder container or even quietly stealing small bites of food.
While these videos do not seem to indicate the emergence of a widespread trend, they were followed by what some media outlets described as an “uproar” in Japan.
Sushiro has already issued a statement saying that the teen behind the original video and his parents have apologized and that the company has issued a formal police complaint.
"We will continue to respond firmly with both criminal and civil cases," the firm said.
The outlet where the aforementioned incident occurred has also reportedly cleaned all of their cups and replaced all soy sauce bottles at the venue, the company said as quoted by local media sources.