Latest news with #UnhappyMeals
IOL News
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- IOL News
'Unhappy Meal': McDonald's Japan sorry for Pokemon debacle
McDonald's Japan's latest Pokémon card giveaway has drawn criticism after some customers bought Happy Meals in bulk to resell the cards, leaving bags of uneaten food. The company says it will tighten limits and work with e-commerce sites to curb profiteering. McDonald's Japan has apologised after a campaign giving away limited-edition Pokemon cards with "Happy Meals" triggered long queues and social media outrage about food waste. Cards with the "little monsters" are extremely popular among children but also adult superfans and collectors, with billions printed and some selling for millions of dollars. There have even been cases of shops that sell the cards - which represent monsters and their attributes - being broken into and physical fights breaking out in low-crime Japan. Launched Friday, the McDonald's stunt soon went awry with some people flocking to buy meals in bulk to resell the attached cards at a higher price on e-commerce sites. Social media was awash with complaints about long queues at McDonald's outlets, with unverified pictures of plastic bags full of uneaten burgers and fries. Some dubbed it the "Unhappy Meals" campaign. "I couldn't buy a Happy Meal for my daughter because of these people", one user posted on X. "I'm sure there are adult Pokemon fans who genuinely want the cards, but these resellers are truly embarrassing," another wrote. "They go to great lengths to collect them and then throw away food ... for how much profit?" Similar problems have hit other McDonald's campaigns, including past collaborations with manga series such as "Chiikawa". Announcing the latest campaign, the firm stressed that each person could buy a maximum of five meals. In a statement Monday, McDonald's conceded there were some instances of "resale-driven mass purchases by customers" that led to "our food being thrown away or discarded". It added that it was looking to "introduce a stricter cap" on future Happy Meals purchases. "Any attempts to buy more than permitted, repeatedly stand in the line, and behave intimidatingly toward our staff" will be met with a rejection, the firm said. The US fast food giant also vowed to ask e-commerce sites to take more effective measures against unscrupulous resale.
The Star
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Star
'Unhappy Meal': McDonald's Japan sorry for Pokemon debacle
McDonald's Japan has apologised after a campaign giving away limited-edition Pokemon cards with "Happy Meals" triggered long queues and social media outrage about food waste. Cards with the "little monsters" are extremely popular among children but also adult superfans and collectors, with billions printed and some selling for millions of dollars. There have even been cases of shops that sell the cards - which represent monsters and their attributes - being broken into and physical fights breaking out in low-crime Japan. Launched Friday, the McDonald's stunt soon went awry with some people flocking to buy meals in bulk to resell the attached cards at a higher price on e-commerce sites. Social media was awash with complaints about long queues at McDonald's outlets, with unverified pictures of plastic bags full of uneaten burgers and fries. Some dubbed it the "Unhappy Meals" campaign. "I couldn't buy a Happy Meal for my daughter because of these people", one user posted on X. "I'm sure there are adult Pokemon fans who genuinely want the cards, but these resellers are truly embarrassing," another wrote. "They go to great lengths to collect them and then throw away food ... for how much profit?" Similar problems have hit other McDonald's campaigns, including past collaborations with manga series such as "Chiikawa". Announcing the latest campaign, the firm stressed that each person could buy a maximum of five meals. In a statement Monday, McDonald's conceded there were some instances of "resale-driven mass purchases by customers" that led to "our food being thrown away or discarded". It added that it was looking to "introduce a stricter cap" on future Happy Meals purchases. "Any attempts to buy more than permitted, repeatedly stand in the line, and behave intimidatingly toward our staff" will be met with a rejection, the firm said. The US fast food giant also vowed to ask e-commerce sites to take more effective measures against unscrupulous resale.
Al Etihad
3 days ago
- Business
- Al Etihad
'Unhappy Meal': McDonald's Japan sorry for Pokemon debacle
13 Aug 2025 12:56 TOKYO (AFP)McDonald's Japan has apologised after a campaign giving away limited-edition Pokemon cards with "Happy Meals" sparked long queues and a social media outrage about food with the "little monsters" are extremely popular among children but also adult superfans and collectors, with billions printed and some selling for millions of have even been cases of shops that sell the cards -- which represent monsters and their attributes -- being broken into and physical fights breaking out in low-crime Friday, the McDonald's stunt soon went wry with some people flocking to buy meals in bulk to resell the attached cards at a higher price on e-commerce media was awash with complaints about long queues at McDonald's outlets, with unverified pictures of plastic bags full of uneaten burgers and dubbed it the "Unhappy Meals" problems have hit other McDonald's campaigns, including past collaborations with manga series such as "Chiikawa".Announcing the latest campaign, the firm stressed that each person could buy a maximum of five a statement Monday, McDonald's conceded there were some instances of "resale-driven mass purchases by customers" that led to "our food being thrown away or discarded."It added that it was looking to "introduce a stricter cap" on future Happy Meals purchases.'Any attempts to buy more than permitted, repeatedly stand in the line, and behave intimidatingly toward our staff' will be met with a rejection, the firm US fast food giant also vowed to ask e-commerce sites to take more effective measures against unscrupulous resale.
Hindustan Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
McDonald's Japan apologises after ‘Pokémon cards' campaign triggers outrage over food waste
McDonald's Japan has issued an apology after the fast food giant's campaign that gave away limited-edition Pokémon cards with "Happy Meals" triggered long queues and social media outrage about food waste across the country. The Pokémon card frenzy can be understood with a simple example that these cards have triggered physical fights and burglaries in the shops that sell them in Japan.(Representational) The 'little monsters' cards are extremely popular among both children and adult superfans and collectors, with some going as high as millions of dollars in value. Billions of 'little monsters' cards are printed every year to keep up with the demand. The frenzy can be understood with a simple example that these cards have triggered physical fights and burglaries in the shops that sell them in Japan, an extremely low-crime country. McDonald's conceded there were some instances of "resale-driven mass purchases by customers" that led to "our food being thrown away or discarded", in a statement released on Monday. The statement added that the company was looking to "introduce a stricter cap" on future Happy Meals purchases. "Any attempts to buy more than permitted, repeatedly stand in the line, and behave intimidatingly toward our staff" will be met with a rejection,' McDonald's said. The US fast food giant also vowed to ask e-commerce sites to take more effective measures against unscrupulous resale. Why the campaign backfired The McDonald's Japan campaign of giving away Pokémon cards with 'Happy Meals' was launched on Friday. Announcing the latest campaign, the firm stressed that each person could buy a maximum of five meals. But it soon went awry with some people flocking to buy meals in bulk to resell the attached cards at a higher price on e-commerce sites. Social media was awash with complaints about long queues at McDonald's outlets, with unverified pictures of plastic bags full of uneaten burgers and fries. Some dubbed it the "Unhappy Meals" campaign. "I couldn't buy a Happy Meal for my daughter because of these people", one user posted on X. "I'm sure there are adult Pokémon fans who genuinely want the cards, but these resellers are truly embarrassing," another wrote. 'They go to great lengths to collect them and then throw away food ... for how much profit?' Similar problems have affected other McDonald's campaigns, including past collaborations with manga series such as 'Chiikawa.'
The Sun
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
McDonald's Japan apologises for Pokemon Happy Meal chaos
TOKYO: McDonald's Japan has issued an apology after a promotional campaign offering limited-edition Pokemon cards with Happy Meals led to chaotic scenes and public anger. The campaign, which launched last Friday, quickly spiralled out of control as collectors and resellers rushed to buy meals in bulk. Cards featuring the beloved 'little monsters' are highly sought after, with some rare editions fetching millions of dollars in the collector's market. Social media erupted with complaints as images surfaced showing long queues at McDonald's outlets and discarded food in plastic bags. Some users criticised resellers for bulk-buying meals just to obtain the cards, leaving children unable to get Happy Meals. 'I couldn't buy a Happy Meal for my daughter because of these people,' one frustrated parent posted on X. Others condemned the waste, with one user questioning, 'They go to great lengths to collect them and then throw away food ... for how much profit?' McDonald's had initially set a limit of five meals per person but acknowledged that some customers bypassed the rule for resale purposes. In a statement on Monday, the company admitted to 'resale-driven mass purchases' resulting in food being discarded. The fast-food chain pledged to enforce stricter purchase limits and crack down on intimidating behaviour towards staff. McDonald's also vowed to work with e-commerce platforms to curb unauthorised reselling of the promotional items. This is not the first time such issues have arisen, with past collaborations, including manga series 'Chiikawa,' facing similar problems. The backlash has led some to sarcastically rename the campaign 'Unhappy Meals.' – AFP
