In Japan, where over 53,000 people have been treated for heatstroke in the past two months with 79 reported deaths, a company is selling "human fridges" called the Do Hiemon or "The Cooling Box". The cooling units cost 1.5 million yen each ($9,407; £6,973) and are being sold to businesses as well as installed in public spaces. The company's CEO, Testsuya Nakayama, said the design was inspired by freezer vending machines. A BBC correspondent got to try out the unit.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-14,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In Japan, where over 53,000 people have been treated for heatstroke and 79 reported deaths occurred in the past two months due to the worsening summer heat, a new product called "Do Hiemon", or "The Cooling Box", is being introduced. This device, which costs 1.5 million yen (approximately $9,407) per unit, is essentially a portable cooler designed to keep people cool. The company's CEO, Testsuya Nakayama, explained that the design was inspired by freezers found in vending machines. The Do Hiemon is being sold to businesses and rolled out in public spaces in an effort to help people stay cool during the hot summer months.
Written for “Japanese Body Modification Fad” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 764 · logged 2026-08-27
Why are 'human fridges' being sold in Japan?
asserted
fridges → sell → Japan
Japan is facing worsening summer heat.
asserted
Japan → face → heat
In the past two months more than 53,000 people have been treated for heatstroke, with 79 reported deaths.
asserted
people → treat → deaths
Now, the Do Hiemon - which roughly translates to "The Cooling Box" - is being rolled out in public spaces and sold to businesses.
asserted
which → translate → businesses
A unit costs 1.5m¥ each ($9,407; £6,973).
asserted
unit → cost → 9,407
The company's CEO Testsuya Nakayama told the BBC the design was inspired by freezer vending machines.
asserted
design → tell → machines
The BBC's Tokyo correspondent Kurumi Mori got the chance to try it out.
asserted
correspondent → get → it
