Sushi-related Products

Traditional Japanese cooking ingredients such as soy sauce, mirin and miso were once ingredients that were only accessible at specialty Asian stores. The expansion of AFC’s product line to include these ingredients, along with various other sushi-related products, gave the mainstream consumer access to traditional Japanese ingredients at their local supermarkets.

 These products are often marked ‘natural’ to appeal to the growing health conscious consumer, and are also marketed as versatile, so that these products may be used for cooking meals other than sushi. The addition of these products not only diversified the supermarkets’ product selection, but also familiarized the mainstream consumer with traditional Japanese ingredients so that they may enjoy Japanese cuisine at home. AFC’s push to produce these products and enter them into the mainstream market reveals the ways in which this company, along with companies alike, pioneered the popularization of Japanese food in America, and thereby its significant contribution to the development of American food culture.

Search term: *:* Resource Type: Tea Clear All

Green Tea Box

Advanced Fresh Concepts Corporation (AFC), known as a distributor of pre-packaged sushi in supermarkets, expanded into other products related to the sushi eating experience.
Description
Advanced Fresh Concepts Corporation (AFC), known as a distributor of pre-packaged sushi in supermarkets, expanded into other products related to the sushi eating experience. Sushi bars in Japan often serve green tea to accompany their sushi, and AFC’s box of green tea reveals their effort in replicating that authentic experience.
This box of individually wrapped tea is pale green that fades to white, with the original AFC logo printed below the word “NATURAL”, indicating that this item is natural without preservatives. The top of the box reads, “AFC Green Tea is made from the finest quality tea and packed in individual aluminum foil pouches to prevent the loss of its elegant flavor and taste”. There is also a red stripe across the sushi that reads "individually packed air-tight to preserve aroma and taste" in white lettering. The images of the cup of tea and sushi platter, consisting of traditional nigiri and non-traditional cut rolls, suggest that the product is to accompany a sushi meal. The bottom of the front display reads 16 tea bags and underneath it says Net WT. is 1.2 oz. (34g). The bottom of the package has both the barcode and instructions. This box of green tea can be bought at AFC sushi bars, their website www.afcsushi.com, or found included in AFC’s Ultimate Sushi Kit set.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1990s
maker
Advanced Fresh Concepts Franchise Corp.
ID Number
2012.3099.10
catalog number
2012.3099.10
nonaccession number
2012.3099

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.