TOKYO: The business of renting out bear repellent spray, which is seeing increased demand as mountaineering equipment, is expanding in Hokkaido.
As bear spray is somewhat expensive, priced at 10,000 yen to 20,000 yen per can, and cannot be carried on aircraft, rental services have become popular among mountaineers visiting from outside the prefecture.
Operators say they hope carrying the spray will let their customers enjoy mountaineering with peace of mind.
Noritaka Shiraiwa, a 52-year-old company employee from Tokyo, launched his bear spray rental company Yamabiyori last year as a side business, targeting hikers in Hokkaido.
Hiking is his hobby, and he has been climbing the Daisetsuzan mountains in Hokkaido about five times a year for the past nine years.
He is captivated by the rich natural environment, but says he has seen bears almost every year since he first encountered one in 2019.
When Shiraiwa hikes in Hokkaido, he carries bear spray that he leaves with a friend who lives in the local city of Obihiro. It was this that gave him the inspiration to start his business.
“If people could rent this stuff, it would be easier for them to use it,” he thought.
Bear repellent spray contains chili pepper, which bears dislike. To prevent a bear attack, you spray it directly onto the face of the approaching bear.
As encounters with bears have grown more common nationwide, such sprays are listed in pamphlets published by the Environment Ministry as an effective tool for protecting oneself in such a situation.
Rentals are accepted through Yamabiyori’s website. The spray can be delivered to a rental car location or accommodation facility, as specified by the user.
It can also be picked up directly from a distribution center located at Honami Marche, a farmers’ market in Hokkaido’s Makubetsu Town, where Shiraiwa has business connections.
Prices start at 3,850 yen per can for one night two days, and users return the spray to the market after use.
Yamabiyori rented about 100 cans last year, and about 50 have been rented out as of mid-June this year.
Half of the business’s customers, who include anglers and tourists, are from the Kanto region, but there have been users from 26 prefectures so far.
Shiraiwa’s goal for the time being is to raise rentals to 200 a year.
Bears that attack people will be killed. However, Shiraiwa said, he believes that if people can protect themselves with the spray, this will serve to protect bears and nature as well.
He plans to add more rental locations and disseminate information on how to use bear spray so that people will be more aware of how to keep themselves safe in the mountains.
In addition, Mont-bell Co., a major mountaineering equipment retailer based in Osaka, began a bear spray rental service operating out of eight stores in Hokkaido last September, and recycling store company Nandemo Recycle Big Bang started a rental service spanning 19 stores in the prefecture in May.
Other outdoor shops and tourist information centers also offer similar services. - The Yomiuri Shimbun
