Kinder had to apologize to parents in the US after shipping a Kinder Egg toy that accidentally made a reference to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) – a fundamentalist right wing movement.
Their egg mascot namely holds three balloons with letter K on them, which sparked complaints of social media users, who found a whole range of things wrong with the toy.
Customers made some comparisons between the mascot and the group, some stating that the group’s ill-famed hood was atop the toy, while others said that the hair could be mistaken for Donald Trump’s style.
Kinder’s parent company, Ferrero, responded to the scrutiny on social media and apologized for any offence caused.
A company spokesperson said: “As detailed in the note to our consumer, initially it was designed with one balloon with a ‘K’ on it. However, two more were added to provide a more robust structure, as the safety and quality of our toys is of the utmost importance. We had absolutely no intention to make associations with the Ku Klux Klan and we truly apologize to our consumers for any unintentional offence caused.”
The toy has since been discontinued, and the company has offered to replace those already distributed.
