"Child-Centered Food Education" in an App! Welcome to Otsuka Pharmaceutical's "Mogu Mogu Town"

 

"We want children to eat their meals without being picky and grow up healthy."

That's what every mom and dad in the world hopes for. But in reality, children's "picky eating" and "refusal to try new foods" often get in the way, making it difficult to achieve.

Balancing work and childcare makes mealtimes feel rushed, leaving little room to talk with children about food...

• Is there a way to approach things so children develop an interest in food on their own?
• Is there anything we can do to help moms and dads with their daily meals?

Born from these thoughts is Otsuka Pharmaceutical's food education game app, "Mogumogu Town."

Download it here!

App Download Page:
iOS compatible: Android compatible
 

From left: Dentsu Inc.'s Ai Sakamoto, Otsuka Pharmaceutical's Taro Muto, Dentsu Inc.'s Yu Orai

But why did Otsuka Pharmaceutical create this free app?

We spoke with Otsuka Pharmaceutical's Taro Muto, in charge of "Mogumogu Town"; Dentsu Inc. planner Ai Sakamoto, who oversaw game development; and art director Yu Orai, responsible for overall design including "Mogumin"!

<Table of Contents>
▼Wanting to change the situation where "just getting kids to eat is all we can manage"!

▼Strategies to keep kids engaged. 250,000 types of Mogumin!?

▼Otsuka Pharmaceutical wants to support food education that empowers children!

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We want to change the situation where "just getting kids to eat their meals is all we can manage"!
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Taro Muto, Otsuka Pharmaceutical

──Today, we'll be talking about "Mogumogu Town," a free app that helps children take an active interest in food and makes daily meals more enjoyable! What kind of game app is "Mogumogu Town"?

Sakamoto: It's a game where you collect hidden food character "Mogumins" in your meals. During daily meals, you take a photo of your food with your smartphone camera, and three "Mogumins" appear from that photo. For example, if you photograph spaghetti with meat sauce, "Mogumins" representing ingredients used in that dish—like "Onion," "Carrot," and "Beef"—will appear.

──So, when families take photos of their breakfast or dinner, characters appear from those photos?

Sakamoto: Yes. Behind the scenes, we use the latest image recognition technology to identify what kind of dish it is. Then, by answering quizzes about those ingredients, you can earn "Mogumins." Repeating this process to collect various "Mogumins" helps grow the town they live in, called "Mogumogu Town."

──Why did Otsuka Pharmaceutical decide to create this game app?

Muto: We wanted to create opportunities for "food education" at home. It might not be widely known, but Otsuka Pharmaceutical has been engaged in food education activities for many years. During this work, we spoke with nutritionists working in elementary schools. It seems today's children have far less knowledge about food than we imagined.

For example, they assume grilled fish comes pre-cut into fillets, don't know fish has bones, or can't recognize vegetables in their original form. We heard many surprising things like that. I think this is partly because dual-income households are increasing, so parents don't have opportunities to take their kids to the supermarket, and ready-made side dishes are becoming more common.

Sakamoto: Picky eating and refusing to try new foods also seem common. When we interviewed moms and dads around us for this app development, we found many struggling with their children's selective eating habits. They're wondering how to get their kids to take an active interest in ingredients and be willing to try them.

Orai: I totally get it! I'm raising a 4-year-old too, and honestly, I just think, "As long as they eat something, anything!" (laughs). Before and after giving birth, I studied baby food and revisited concepts like the "three-color food groups," so I always have the importance of nutritionally balanced meals in the back of my mind.

Muto: I have a 4-year-old too, and honestly, it's tough to get young kids to eat nutritionally balanced meals every single day.

Orai: It is difficult. When my child says "I don't want this" and refuses to eat, it's not that I can't correct them, but I also think "pushing them too hard probably isn't good in the long run." If kids are constantly told "Eat this!" at every meal, they might start to hate eating...

Sakamoto: This kind of concern is actually a societal issue in Japan. In a survey we conducted with Otsuka Pharmaceutical (*), a full 70% of respondents said they felt their child's nutrition was unbalanced.

※Survey on Children's Food Education and Digital Utilization

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Muto: I doubt any parent thinks "food education doesn't matter." Everyone is looking for better methods. So, we consulted Dentsu Inc., who have long supported our business, about developing an app that sparks children's interest in food at home. We'd actually co-developed a food education app called "Sketch Cook" with Dentsu Inc. before, so we already shared common challenges.

──What was the concept when you started developing "Mogumogu Town"?

Muto: Our goal was "something you can do at home that teaches food-related knowledge," but the most important thing was "something children would find fun." We focused on creating something that would spark children's interest in food and encourage them to engage with it actively.

Ōrai: Reflecting on my own daily parenting experience, I truly feel that when children themselves show interest and say "I want to do this!", that's when they enjoy it the most and actually learn. That's precisely why we decided to pursue elements that make children genuinely want to do it themselves to the utmost. 

Strategies to keep children engaged. 250,000 types of Mogumin!?
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Dentsu Inc., Yu Orai

──What were your key focuses during app development?

Ōrai: First, we focused on making it engaging enough that kids wouldn't get bored and would want to play repeatedly. In this app, when you take a photo of a home-cooked meal, a food character called "Mogumin" appears. We thought kids would get bored if, for example, taking a photo of an apple always showed the same-looking "Apple Mogumin." So, we decided to increase the variety so that even for the same food, a different-looking "Mogumin" would appear each time.

Sakamoto: "Mogumogu Town" supports 100 different ingredients, but we actually designed 50 different "eyes" and 50 different "mouths." That means the system can generate 100 × 50 × 50 = 250,000 different Mogumins. By creating Mogumins with various expressions, we hoped kids would look forward to seeing "What kind of Mogumin will I meet today?"

Orai: We explored many design ideas, but to create a warm experience even digitally, we decided to base it on "crafts" familiar to children. That's why we built the 3D characters using "paper cutouts." We prepared various eye and mouth parts, so even the same "Apple Mogumin" can have completely different personalities, which is really fun.

Muto: It's funny how just changing the eyes and mouth can make you think, "Hey, that looks like someone!" (laughs).

Orai: I think parents and kids will have lively conversations like, "This 'Mogumin' looks just like Mom!" or "It looks like my friend ◯◯-chan!" (laughs). While creating them myself, I enjoyed thinking, "This one looks just like someone I know!"

Muto: Beyond keeping it fresh, we focused on that "sense of accomplishment." As you answer quizzes and make "Mogumin" your friends, various facilities appear, building up the town called "Mogumogu Town."

Sakamoto: This idea came from another planner. "Mogumogu Town" is set inside the body. There are various facilities like the "Tannou Tank," "Hai Tower Mansion," and "Ibukuro Mantan Pool." We wanted kids to feel, "The things I eat are building my body."

Ōrai: The visuals are cute, and the facility names are kind of gag-like (laughs). We carefully considered the shapes and names so children could enjoy feeling like this is indeed inside the body.

Muto: You can recruit various "Mogumins" as friends, and the town grows. Even adults will find new discoveries and a sense of accomplishment every time they use the app. The "Mogumogu Town" idea really clicked, and Sakamoto-san and Orai-san brought it to life with such fun creativity.

──So the fun of the game, collecting "Mogumins," connects to learning about ingredients and the body—it's "food education."

Muto: Yes, that integration is crucial. While we've included many features to make it fun for children, this is an app for food education. Every element is built around the concept of "ensuring children can understand proper food knowledge."

When you take a photo, "Mogumin" appears. It explains the ingredient's characteristics, nutrition, seasonality, and what dishes it's used in through fun text, and you can also see photos of the actual ingredient. To ensure reliable content, we had it supervised by a registered dietitian from the Japan Sports Nutrition Association.

Sakamoto: While the main target for this app is second and third graders, the content is designed to be enjoyable for younger children and adults alike. Dentsu Inc.'s copywriters meticulously crafted the text to convey a wide range of information about ingredients while keeping it fun and humorous, avoiding complexity. We also put a lot of effort into getting the balance just right for the quizzes – not too difficult, but not too easy either.

Muto: We worked closely with Dentsu Inc., incorporating advice from registered dietitians on what content would capture children's interest.

Sakamoto: Muto-san's ideas were also incredibly helpful. Being right in the thick of raising children herself, she offered spot-on suggestions both from a parent's perspective ( ) and from the professional standpoint of Otsuka Pharmaceutical.

Otsuka Pharmaceutical wants to support food education that empowers children to take the lead!
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Dentsu Inc., Ai Sakamoto

──I understand you also had the children of the development team test the product. How did they react?

Sakamoto: When we had team members' children try it during the prototype stage, the response was surprisingly positive. One member had been struggling with their child being a very picky eater, but after the child encountered "Asparagus Mogumin," they started liking asparagus.

Orai: Exactly! That's such a great story.

Sakamoto: Seeing the app's photo of a whole asparagus, the child asked, "Asparagus is this long?" (laughs). After all, asparagus served at the dinner table is cut into bite-sized pieces. The parent realized they'd never shown their child a whole asparagus before and decided, "From now on, I'll show them the original form of ingredients before cooking!"

Muto: It's great that kids playing with this app can spark new insights for moms and dads too. It becomes a form of "food education" for the whole family. We hope "Mogumogu Town" inspires parents and kids to go shopping together, look at different ingredients, and talk about them.

──Finally, a brief business-related question. This product seems to fall under "gamification," solving problems through play. What insights have Otsuka Pharmaceutical and Dentsu Inc. gained from working on gamification through "Sketch Cook" and "Mogumogu Town"?

Sakamoto: I believe games and learning are a great match. Some parents might feel guilty about their children playing games on smartphones. But if used effectively, I think they can become a powerful ally for learning.

Orai: Kids absolutely love teaching their parents things. Children who learn about food through "Mogumogu Town" will start engaging with food proactively. The app's goal is to spark children's interest in food and foster communication between parents and children around food.

Children truly learn what they actively want to do. They happily share what they've learned and discovered on their own. That's precisely why we want to create experiences that make children themselves want to say, "I want to eat this!" or "Do you know about this?"

Muto: There are many opinions about smartphones and parenting, but in this day and age, it's difficult to separate digital media like YouTube and smartphones from childcare. So, I think providing apps that offer learning opportunities and can be used with peace of mind is one approach.

──Tell us about future plans for "Mogumogu Town"!

Sakamoto: We're considering expansions beyond the app, with two initiatives currently in progress. One is "Mogumogu Town Karuta." This idea emerged as our team brainstormed fun promotions for children.

Orai: Since we now have this charming character, Mogumin, we wanted to create something families and friends could enjoy together.

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Sakamoto: It's a matching card game where you learn about the so-called "three-color food groups." By combining the digital app with real-world experiences, we're expanding the world of "Mogumogu Town." The "reading cards" are masterpieces crafted by Dentsu Inc. copywriters (laughs).

Ōrai: And another is the video content "Mogumogu Town Radio." This is scheduled for release on March 19th. We'll feature the "Mogumins" who live in "Mogumogu Town" as rotating guests, with rice—the staple food at the dinner table—serving as the "MC Rice," delivering a radio show-style animated program on YouTube.

Sakamoto: This goes a step beyond what can be learned in the game app. We planned it to spark children's interest in cooking and nutrition, covering not just nutrition but also recommended dishes based on ingredient combinations. At the same time, we hope that while kids are watching "Mogumogu Town Radio," moms and dads can prepare meals more smoothly.

Muto: We hope the card games and video content spark positive conversations about food, and that "Mogumogu Town" becomes a fond memory, encouraging more use of the game app. Please give it a download!

Sakamoto: We'd be thrilled if having many people use "Mogumogu Town" helps convey Otsuka Pharmaceutical's commitment to food education to the wider public. Working with everyone at Otsuka Pharmaceutical, including Mr. Muto, I truly feel their dedication to being a company focused on health.

Muto: Thank you! I hope "Mogumogu Town" can serve as a helpful hint for food education activities in various households and companies.

We held an experience session on "Food Education Day"! The results? The children's expressions tell the whole story.

Mogumogu Town Official Website
https://mogumogu-town.jp/
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