Recently, Mars Wrigley, the manufacturer of Snickers, released a limited edition Snickers chocolate bar in collaboration with BTS in countries such as Thailand, Singapore, and Vietnam. Instead of the original product name "SNICKERS," the packaging features the titles of BTS's hit songs. [Photo by Twitter]
[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] A boycott movement against the chocolate bar 'Snickers' is emerging within China. This chocolate bar gained attention as a product released through a collaboration with the group BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan).
According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Mars Wrigley, the manufacturer of Snickers, launched a limited edition Snickers chocolate bar in countries such as Thailand, Singapore, and Vietnam in collaboration with BTS. The packaging was changed from the usual brown to purple, symbolizing BTS. Instead of the product name 'SNICKERS,' the packaging featured titles of BTS's representative songs, receiving great response from local consumers.
However, Chinese consumers showed a cold reaction. They rather criticized the company and even initiated a boycott of the chocolate bar.
The controversy arose from the content in the product-related promotional materials. Previously, the company encouraged consumer participation in events by displaying the South Korean flag alongside the Malaysian flag, Jalur Gemilang, and Taiwan's Blue Sky with a White Sun flag.
In response, Chinese media and netizens strongly criticized, saying that "classifying Taiwan as a 'country' undermines the One-China principle." The One-China principle means that China, Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan are inseparable as one, and the People's Republic of China is the sole legitimate government. This is also known as China's basic principle for handling the Taiwan issue.
Chinese netizens posted on Weibo (China's version of Twitter) comments such as "I won't buy Snickers for the country," "They probably don't care about the Chinese market," and "Let's show that Snickers can fail."
As the controversy continued, the company posted an apology on the Snickers China Weibo account on the 5th (local time) and bowed their heads. According to WSJ, the company stated in the apology, "We have been informed about the related content in certain regions of Asia," and "We take this very seriously and express our deepest apologies."
They also stated, "We respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and will strictly comply with local Chinese laws and regulations." Furthermore, they added, "There is only one China in the world, and Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory." Currently, the company has deleted or corrected the promotional materials that were pointed out as problematic.
On the 5th, a Chinese warship is sailing in the waters off Pingtan Island, Fujian Province, closest to Taiwan. [Image source=Yonhap News]
However, amid rising tensions between Taiwan and China, the controversy does not seem likely to subside easily. Recently, China conducted encirclement drills around six areas near Taiwan. This was triggered by the visit of Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, to Taiwan on the 2nd. China continues to pressure Taiwan by suspending communication channels with the U.S. on issues such as maritime security and climate change.
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