kyara Ben (character Bento)

Feature story Sunday morning on National Public Radio (USA), web version includes photos:

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/07/24/486941516/japans-lunchbox-trend-kyaraben-takes-lunch-prep-to-another-level

[Excerpt]

Packing your child's lunch calls for a whole different level of preparation in Japan. There, moms often shape ordinary lunch ingredients like ham or rice into cute little pandas, Pokemon or even famous people's faces. 

       It's called character bento, and there's considerable pressure to produce these cute food creations. Tomomi Maruo has been teaching how to make character bentos, or "kyaraben" for short — at her home for the past 13 years.

       "My kid brought kyaraben to the kindergarten and his friends saw the bento and moms started asking me how to make kyaraben so that's how I started teaching," Maruo said.

[related story-1] These Parents Make Lovely Lunch Bag Art. Not Everyone Is Pleased

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/04/29/401283301/these-parents-make-lovely-lunch-bag-art-not-everyone-is-pleased

[related story-2] In Japan, Food Can Be Almost Too Cute To Eat

http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/02/04/170583365/in-japan-food-can-be-almost-too-cute-to-eat