Xiang Piao Piao, a prominent Chinese milk tea brand, found itself at the center of a sensation as netizens discovered one of its products featuring cup sleeves satirizing Japan’s approach to disposing of nuclear-contaminated water. The revelation sparked widespread attention, propelling the company’s stock price to hit the daily limit on Monday.
Reports indicate a staggering 400 percent surge in live streaming sales for Xiang Piao Piao in China over the weekend, fueled by millions of netizens purchasing the controversial products. The catalyst for this surge was a Chinese netizen’s discovery of MECO fruit tea, a drink under the Xiang Piao Piao brand, being sold in a Japanese store with cup sleeves bearing slogans critical of Japan’s handling of nuclear waste.
The circulation of images depicting these cup sleeves, notably featuring phrases such as “the ocean is not Japan’s sewer” and “0.1 percent of the land pollutes 70 percent of the ocean,” quickly gained traction on Chinese social media platforms. This viral exposure led to a surge in viewership of Xiang Piao Piao’s live streaming sales, resulting in a significant increase in daily sales volume, reportedly skyrocketing from 2,500 yuan to 1 million yuan.
The overwhelming demand for the controversial cup sleeves resulted in stock shortages, prompting assurances from the company that replenishment would occur at a later date. Xiang Piao Piao’s official Weibo account acknowledged the response, lauding the actions of its staff and announcing plans to reward employees and donate proceeds from the live stream to the Environmental Protection Foundation.
However, it’s worth noting that the company has distanced itself from the controversy, attributing the actions of its employees to personal behavior rather than a corporate initiative. Additionally, the Kyowa store in Okubo, Japan, mentioned in the initial reports, denied selling drinks with the contentious cup sleeves.
The controversy comes amidst ongoing concerns over Japan’s handling of nuclear-contaminated water from the Fukushima disaster. Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) initiated the release of the fifth batch of contaminated water into the ocean in April, with plans for further releases in the coming fiscal year.
The intersection of environmental activism, consumer activism, and geopolitical tensions has propelled Xiang Piao Piao into the spotlight, underscoring the power of social media in shaping public discourse and consumer behavior.
