Burger King removes 'racist' ad in New Zealand

Burger King has removed its latest ad circulating on social media in New Zealand, after complaints from consumers who considered it "racist".

The ad featured several people trying (and failing) to eat a Vietnamese-themed burger using chopsticks.

"Take your tastebuds all the way to Ho Chi Minh City with our Vietnamese Sweet Chilli Tendercrisp, part of our Tastes of the World range. Available for a limited time only," a caption for the ad read on Instagram.

Maria Mo, a Korean New Zealander, posted the ad to her Twitter account, slamming it as racist.

So this is the new Burger King ad for a “Vietnamese” burger ok coolcoolcoolcoolcool CHOPSTICKS R HILARIOUS right omg etc 🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃🙃 pic.twitter.com/zVD8CN04Wc

— a little mo (@moxieandtv) April 4, 2019

"So this is the new Burger King ad for a 'Vietnamese' burger ok coolcoolcoolcoolcool CHOPSTICKS R HILARIOUS right omg etc".

Mo, a student at the University of Waikato, told HuffPost she decided to post the video because she was shocked to see it appear on her Instagram feed in the first place.

"Because I couldn't believe such blatantly ignorant ads are still happening in 2019, it honestly took me a second to work out what the heck I was looking at," she told HuffPost.

"I was watching it thinking there must be some kind of layered twist ― only to realise, no, there was no twist, it really was that base level," she said.

"(People of colour) are constantly having to deal with microaggressions as well as outright hatred and it just never ends," she added.

Her tweet quickly went viral with many echoing her concerns about the ad.

LOL chopsticks amirite??????

Who the hell came up with this? There are a lot of Asian people in NZ, though they probably aren’t getting their Vietnamese food from Burger King 🤢 https://t.co/XSGYX7IVBR

— Catherine Shu 🧶 (@CatherineShu) April 5, 2019

I'm so sick of racism. Of any kind. Of the kind that makes fun of different cultures, to the kind that shoots and murders those peacefully praying in their place of worship. Say no to every single manifestation of it. #GiveNothingToRacism.

— a little mo (@moxieandtv) April 7, 2019

The same ad had already been pulled from television following complaints of a different nature. Last month, the ad was removed from TV after the Advertising Standards Authority ruled it "enticing people to overeat" because it finished by saying "Just need another three".

However, Burger King continued promoting the ad on social media.

Burger King's general manager of marketing, James Woodbridge, told the Herald the company is "truly sorry" and the ad has been removed.

"We are truly sorry that the ad has appeared insensitive to our community. We have removed it and it certainly does not reflect our brand values around diversity and inclusion," he said.