About a month and a half after the Kumamoto earthquake struck, many people in the disaster-affected areas continue to face an uncertain future, living in evacuation centers or in damaged homes. AAR Japan (Association for Aid and Relief, Japan) has been distributing yokan, a traditional Japanese confection made from sweet bean paste and agar jelly, donated by Toraya Co., Ltd., a long-established Japanese confectionery company headquartered in Tokyo, to disaster survivors.

AAR has been distributing Toraya’s small yokan bars, a portable traditional sweet that can be stored for long periods without refrigeration along with other relief supplies to evacuees at shelters and disability welfare facilities affected by the disaster, as well as at the relief distribution site AAR set up in Hikawa Town, Kumamoto Prefecture. AAR has also provided the yokan to non-Japanese residents affected by the disaster. The yokan distribution has also helped raise awareness of the distribution site itself, drawing local residents who come specifically to receive Toraya’s sweets.

Recipients have shared comments such as, “I was exhausted and craving something sweet—I’m so happy, since nowhere else is handing out Toraya yokan,” and “My grandmother, who’s been staying quietly at home during evacuation, has been enjoying it happily.” Foreign survivors have also had the chance to enjoy this Japanese sweet, including a Vietnamese resident who said she loves sweets.

AAR and Toraya share a long-standing cooperative relationship through disaster relief efforts. Toraya has donated yokan to disaster survivors on multiple past occasions, including the 2004 Niigata Chuetsu earthquake, the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, the 2020 Kyushu floods, the August 2021 heavy rains, and the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake.

Toraya also provided support during the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake, when bite-sized yokan brought joy to evacuees living in shelters throughout Kumamoto City. The following year, in 2017, AAR held an “Ocha-kko Kai” (a community tea gathering) at temporary housing in Mashiki Town, where residents enjoyed Toraya’s yokan together with matcha tea. Gathered around the yokan, residents chatted and connected with one another, creating a space for community among those affected by the disaster.

We would like to express our gratitude to Toraya for their many years of warm support for disaster-affected communities. AAR continues to work alongside companies, government bodies, partner organizations, and local communities to support people in the affected areas.
We kindly ask for your continued support for AAR’s emergency response efforts following the Kumamoto earthquake.