The most amazing toilet paper in Japan

Where to buy your toilet paper when supermarket is empty. 

日本語

I have always wanted to talk about our toilet paper because it's fabulous, but goats and chickens don't wipe their bottoms so the topic never seemed relevant enough for this blog. (Nobuo and I use this toilet paper at home.) But now with the coronavirus panic, it seems toilet paper can save lives. Or bottoms. So I decided to share my extensive know-how here.

We haven't bought a single roll of toilet paper in the past few months, but the shelf in our bathroom still looks like this (picture taken today) :

Where does it come from?


This TP was bought three months ago - last December just before Christmas, as a part of my toilet paper purchase routine once in five months or so. Now it's about half of the rolls that arrived in December.

For the past 9 years, I have never bought toilet paper in the supermarket. Why would I do that when there is a much better option?

We buy our toilet paper from an organization called Kyodogakusha 共働学舎 online. Here's the link to the order form (Japanese):
http://kyoudougakusya.esy.es/

I always buy 1 set of 32 rolls of 130m tubeless paper, which is enough for about 5 months for a 2-person household. A big box then arrives a few days later. Then I go and pay the bill at the post office. 
Even though I can't pay by credit card, it's still much less hassle than carrying toilet paper from the store every month.
32 rolls cost 3030 yen (this includes tax and postal fee).

But the best thing is not that it's convenient and non-expensive.

The best thing is that Kyodogakusha is not in fact a toilet paper making company. It's a nonprofit that works with people with disabilities. You can learn more about their activities on their website (Japanese).
One of their programs is making toilet paper. So this toilet paper creates jobs for people who need them.

It's also made 100% from recycled paper and it's not bleached. There is no plastic wrapping at all (just the cardboard box).
And there is always a sweet handwritten thank you note on the envelope and a hand-colored leaflet (clearly someone's important job at the facility):

So I can actually feel good about buying toilet paper, while saving time and money. Can you imagine a better deal?