Kodak Alaris will stop production and sales of all Kodak chemicals (for color paper, color film, black and white paper and black and white film processing) in Japan at the end of November.
Kodak’s chemicals are produced at Kodak Alaris’s plant in Wuxi, China, but over the years, for various reasons, it has been difficult to source chemicals from subcontractors and trucking, and since the beginning of this year, production and Shipments to Japan have all but stopped. Production and shipments to Japan have also not fully resumed since the beginning of the year.
In addition, Japan’s rapidly shrinking demand for chemicals has also made it difficult to arrange container ships due to insufficient numbers. In view of the current situation and the expectation that the situation will recover in the near future, it is difficult for Kodak-related companies to provide a stable and responsible product supply, and it is regrettable that this decision has been made.
If Kodak stopped selling the chemicals, film camera enthusiasts could be in trouble, as it might be harder to get developer solutions for black-and-white films like D-76 and XTOL. However, Kodak did not stop the production of chemicals, but only stopped sales in Japan, so users can obtain these chemicals through personal import or other means.
