Pictograms Help Visitors Glean What’s in Their Meals at a Glance

The Yomiuri Shimbun

16:10 JST, August 31, 2025

Pictograms designed by a Kobe-based company are helping visitors to the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo see at a glance what ingredients are used in meals served there, giving peace of mind to those who have allergies or cannot eat certain foods for religious reasons.

Shrimp, crab and wheat are among the common food allergens. Muslims do not eat pork or drink alcohol, and Hindus abstain from eating beef. In addition, a growing number of people are becoming vegetarians. Foodpict Inc.’s pictograms of 32 specific food ingredients that can trigger allergies or are avoided by certain people have become a common sight at the Expo.

Thirty-five of the about 45 restaurants at the Expo display the pictograms. They also have been used at a total of about 80 other Expo locations, such as pavilions that sell food and limited-time special events.

More than 90% of 1,500 people from Japan and abroad who were surveyed about the pictograms said they understood what ingredients were being depicted. This confirmed the pictograms’ simple design was effective.

“I hope we help lift the level of hospitality shown to visitors by catering to their diverse food preferences,” Foodpict President Nobutaka Kikuchi, 39, said.

Development of the pictograms has its origins back in 2005, when Kikuchi was a university student and was showing Muslims around Osaka as a volunteer. When lunchtime arrived, Kikuchi tried several Japanese-style restaurants but was unable to confirm which ingredients each dish contained. In the end, he had to take his guests to a fast-food restaurant also well-known overseas.

“More people from overseas will come to Japan in the years ahead,” Kikuchi recalled thinking. “I think many people would be happy if ingredients were clearly shown with illustrations.”

While still a student, Kikuchi completed an original version of the pictograms with the help of a designer he knew and then pitched his product to restaurants and local governments. Awareness of the pictograms received a major boost when they were used at the venue of the 2010 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit meeting in Yokohama. The pictograms are now being used in more than 1,600 restaurants across Japan.

A major restaurant chain is also using the pictograms at the Expo, and Kikuchi has high hopes the event will expand sales channels further.

“Many foreign residents work in Kansai, which is home to many manufacturing industries,” Kikuchi said. “I hope the Expo will be an opportunity for consideration of diverse food preferences to become more standard in daily life.”