In Japan chopsticks are an extremely personal item - you grow attached to a pair you've had a long time, enjoying the weight and feel on that specific pair. As a result, disposable chopsticks can not be enjoyable to use. Disposable chopsticks or other cutlery had long been the choice for camp or adventures as they were the sole options available on the market.
Due to the length of chopsticks they weren't able to be store them in cookers and therefore would create additional packing for lightweight excursions. This gave the Snow Peak developer a challenge to overcome.
The solution was found that splitting the chopsticks down the middle and engineering a way to store the tips inside the grip. They fixed a screw to the end of the tip attaching it to the grip. In storage inside the tip would be suspended rather than against the grip to increase hygiene, with hygiene in mind the tip was also made out of stainless steel for easy cleaning.
After the decision on how to split and store the chopsticks was decided. The distance of the split down the chopsticks was fine tuned down in order for it not to interact with the users' fingers and cause discomfort through use.
Initially the tips were made of reinforced wood, inspired by the chopsticks used in schools in Japan. This was used thanks to its' properties as being tough and durable, making the chopsticks easy to wash by putting them in a dishwasher and less likely to break when traveling with them. Always looking to evolve the material was later changed to bamboo in order to improve the in-hand feeling.
The Wabuki Chopsticks were released in 1996 with a carry case that can be worn around the next so that they could be used as not just camp chopsticks, but everyday chopsticks as well. More than 25 years later the Wabuki Chopsticks are still used around the world daily and has grown in to one of Snow Peak's most iconic pieces of gear.
