[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon] A story about Jangmo-nim Chicken, a domestic chicken franchise, delivering boneless chicken containing cigarette butts has sparked outrage among consumers.
According to a report on an online community site on the 11th, netizen A claimed that on the 7th, they ordered boneless chicken for delivery from a Jangmo-nim Chicken franchise in Masan, Gyeongsangnam-do, and found cigarette butts stuck to the chicken pieces.
The photo released by A showed cigarette butts with the brand logo visible attached to the chicken pieces.
After immediately complaining to the store and receiving a refund through the delivery app, A explained that they were angered by the store’s attitude.
The store not only refused to apologize but also denied responsibility by saying, “None of the employees smoke,” and gave absurd responses such as “Isn’t it French fries?” and “Try eating it once.”
The headquarters also fueled the controversy by responding, “The owners of that branch do not smoke.”
Eventually, the franchise owner visited A’s home to personally check the cigarette butts and apologized, but when A said they would report the incident to the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, the owner got angry, saying, “Young people shouldn’t live like that,” and “How can you do this when I’m over 70 years old?” before leaving.
As the controversy intensified, Jangmo-nim Chicken headquarters posted an ‘apology statement’ on their website, stating, “We have issued a 15-day suspension of operations for the store in question by the headquarters’ direct authority as a first measure,” and “As a second measure, during a meeting with the franchise owners’ council to decide additional disciplinary actions, the problematic store owner decided to close the business, apologizing for causing harm to other franchise owners who were operating the Jangmo-nim Chicken brand sincerely. The franchise owners’ council and the headquarters have agreed to accept this. The employee responsible for customer response at headquarters has also been demoted and removed from the relevant duties, and further measures will be taken later.”
Meanwhile, Jangmo-nim Chicken is a chicken franchise that started its business in 1989, with its franchises mainly concentrated in the Yeongnam region.
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