McDonald’s Japan has scrapped its Pokémon-themed Happy Meals after a frenzy of adult collectors and resellers turned a family promotion into a nationwide controversy. The company has issued a public apology, acknowledging its failure to prepare for the surge in demand, AP News reports.
The “Happy Set”, as the meal is called in Japan, is marketed to children and typically includes a toy. For this promotion, customers received a small Pokémon figure or trading card alongside their burger or nuggets.
But once word spread that the cards were exclusive and resellable, collectors and scalpers swarmed outlets nationwide. Some stores sold out within hours. By evening, images of discarded food piled around bins went viral, fuelling anger over waste.
“We do not believe in abandoning and discarding food,” the company said, admitting that the outcome ran counter to its core philosophy of offering “a fun dining experience for children and families.” The fast-food chain apologised, adding that its preparation for the promotion “had not been adequate.”
To prevent a repeat, McDonald’s announced plans to limit the number of meals each person can buy, suspend online orders, and deny service to customers who break the rules. “We vow to return to the basics of what lies behind the Happy Set,” it stated, promising to refocus on “bringing smiles to families” rather than fuelling resale mania.
As AP News noted, Pokémon card collecting is a global obsession, with some cards selling for thousands of dollars. In Japan, where a Happy Meal typically costs around 510 yen (Rs 293~), resellers rushed to snap up meals and flip the exclusive cards online for tens of thousands of yen.
The chaos has reignited debate in Japan about consumerism and food waste — and reminded one of the world’s biggest brands that nostalgia and scarcity, when combined, can turn even a children’s meal into a moral mess.
