A recent McDonald’s Pokémon card and toy promotion in Japan got canceled after less than 24 hours due to a ridiculous amount of food waste. Customers bought the “Happy Sets”, took the merchandise and dumped the food near or even inside the restaurants. Several of the people who wasted these Happy Meals likely went on to sell the cards online for a large sum of money.
McDonald’s announced the cancelation in a statement on its website. Roughly translated, the company stated, “Regarding the recent Happy Set® ‘Pokémon’ Pokémon Card Campaign, we have confirmed a number of issues including: bulk purchases by some customers with the intent to resell, resulting congestion and disorder both inside and around our stores, and incidents where ordered food was left behind or discarded.”
The fast food franchise also condemned the behavior. It expressed its disappointment in the aforementioned message, “McDonald’s does not condone purchases of Happy Sets for the purpose of resale, nor the abandonment or disposal of food. These behaviors clearly contradict our long-held commitment to providing enjoyable dining experiences for children and their families, and we solemnly acknowledge that our response this time was insufficient.”
McDonald’s warned its customers of the consequences if this were to continue. “Furthermore, customers who engaged in clearly disruptive actions during this Pokémon Happy Set promotion—or who have a history of such purchases—may be subject to account termination from the official McDonald’s app, in accordance with our terms and conditions.”
Pokémon cards’ dark history
This incident is far from the first time Pokémon cards have wreaked havoc. From a man getting stabbed in California and another getting assaulted in a parking lot in New South Wales, countries around the world are suffering from violent attacks due to the high demand for the highest-grossing franchise’s cards.
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