Japanese convenience store chain FamilyMart came up with these crying face stickers begging consumers to “help” them.

The new stickers replace conventional discount stickers that are applied on rice balls and sandwiches when they are nearing their expiration date.

FamilyMart sustainability promotion department Osawa / We would like to have an initiative that is more emotionally appealing to customers.

A demonstration experiment using these stickers showed that the purchase rate increased by 5 points compared to the previous stickers.

The combini operator giant estimates that the stickers will help reduce food loss by about 3,000 tons per year.

The sticker will be introduced in FamilyMart outlets nationwide starting March 11.

The move is one of the recent efforts by convenience store operators to reduce food waste.

In February, Lawson began selling four types of frozen rice balls that can be stored for long periods of time at about 400 outlets in Tokyo.