'Chew slowly warning' after nine people choke to death on Japanese delicacy

Officials in Japan are urging people to chew slowly while eating traditional New Year treats after at least nine people choked to death. Sticky rice cakes, or “mochi”, are an essential part of the Japanese holiday menu but the glutinous sweets, grilled or cooked in broth or with sweet beans, can get stuck in people’s throats, blocking their windpipes. The Yomiuri newspaper reported that at least 128 people were rushed to hospital after choking.

Mochi should never be eaten alone.

Warning from Japan emergency services

In addition to the Tokyo deaths, three people died in Chiba prefecture, while one each died in Osaka, Aomori and Nagasaki prefectures, the Yomiuri reported. In the Nagasaki case, an 80-year-old-man choked on a mochi that was in sweet bean soup served for free at a Shinto shrine. Japanese people customarily visit shrines and temples to welcome the new year, and mochi, sake and other treats are sold or given out.

Asia-Pacific mochi