Candy Company Haribo had to stop selling certain gummies after thousands of social media users said the snack was “racist.”
While Haribo defended its decision to use the black licorice faces and denied that the new product was tied to negative connotations, the company caved to the criticism.
Head of Haribo Sweden Ola Dagliden said the company debated about keeping the product while getting rid of the parts customers deemed was offense.
According to a Danish Twitter user, he compared the gummies to the country’s colonial past.
Saam Kapadia said the Haribo Skipper Mix reminded him of his Danish heritage, asking if it were slave trade, colonial legacy or multiculturalism.
The company eliminated the product from its website and stopped selling the Skipper Mix as well.
Ahlens, a department store chain based in Sweden, was under fire in 2013 for offering a contentious product – a Christmas catalog with two black figures dressed up as butlers. Complaints originated from both customers and employees before the store took the catalog out of its stores.
source [1]