Outstanding mileage for the size.

Toilet paper is often the unsung hero of everyday life, sometimes even unceremoniously thrown over the house of mean old Mr. Green up the street. Regardless of whether he had it coming or not for not giving me my ball back, the point is that toilet paper itself never gets the respect and reverence it deserves, at least until it’s not there when needed and it suddenly becomes the most important substance in the universe.

Perhaps sensing this paradigm, convenience store chain 7-Eleven has come up with possibly the grandest and most abundant toilet paper Japan has ever seen. Dubbed “Japan’s longest” roll of TP for home use, it boasts a length of 356 meters (1,168 feet), about 7.11 times longer than a normal roll, which they estimate to be 50 meters (164 feet).

This roll of single ply is produced by Marutomi Seishi, who makes the previously longest roll of toilet paper, the Super Long Pulp 6x Roll 300m. With their special technique, Marutomi can create these rolls several times longer than conventional TP, but maintaining a diameter that’s only slightly wider.

▼ This infographic shows that 7-Eleven is having lots of fun with numbers. Not only is the length, and therefore width, about seven times a normal roll, the diameter is about 1.1 times one.

Marutomi said they developed the product based on a survey that suggests one in three married couples were dissatisfied with their toilet paper. One of the reasons being that it gets used up too fast and replacing it is a nuisance. That survey probably wasn’t too enlightening since just having an empty tube next to the toilet is annoying to everyone, except maybe those really into arts and crafts.

▼ That should be just enough for a robot.

Speaking of empty tubes, part of their space-saving technique is that these rolls have no cardboard tubes inside. Not only does this reduce added waste but it allows for easy storage that’s great for disaster preparedness kits, reduces overall transportation emissions, and lets you buy a large amount of TP without having to carry one of those suitcase-sized packs all over the place.

▼ I don’t usually also have an armful of loose rolls while shopping, but I guess the basic sentiment is the same.

Considering how ultra-condensed it is, you might be wondering how well the paper holds up. Judging by the reviews for the Super Long Pulp 6x Roll 300m on Amazon Japan, all of the comments seem satisfied with the paper itself and the only complaint was that the roll can get warped as it gets near the end because there’s no tube inside.

So, we can probably expect the same level of quality from 7-Eleven’s version too, and at a suggested retail price of 298 yen (US$2), it’s even comparable to regular toilet paper, especially from a convenience store.

Even if you only demand the finest in luxury for your bottom, it might be worth it to pick up a roll and squirrel it away in case of emergencies. You never know when people might start panic buying the stuff again.

Source: PR Times, Amazon Japan
Images: PR Times
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