Starbucks Korea Apologizes After Online Outrage Over Cancer-Causing Summer Merch
Starbucks Korea has issued an apology for a health-related incident regarding their merchandise.
Last May, the world-renowned coffee chain revealed their Summer Carry Bag, a rectangular handheld luggage branded with the Starbucks logo. It was included in their summertime merch collection and, like similar giveaway items such as its annual planner, could be purchased using points.
Several months later, they have begun accepting returns of the bags from customers following an anonymous tip that they contain formaldehyde, a “colorless, strong-smelling, flammable chemical” that can cause leukemia and other rare cancers when one is exposed to high levels of it.
An alleged researcher from the FITI Testing and Research Institute broke the news on community app Blind. Though the institute—a testing agency in consumer goods—stated that the post was not an official position of theirs, it still led to widespread outrage among Starbucks customers in South Korea.
Starbucks Korea responded by offering three free drink coupons to owners of the bag in compensation. An official of the company further released a statement of apology for the issue, adding that they are currently conducting third party tests to confirm the anonymous claims.
We apologize for causing concerns to our customers over this incident. We are still checking with our supplier concerning the allegation that formaldehyde was detected in our Summer Carry Bag item. Separately, we are also conducting our own inspection through an accredited outside agency. The result will likely come out in a week or so.
— Starbucks Korea Official
They stood firm that they were not committing any crimes, however, they were open to learning more about the alleged formaldehyde in their product.
No violation has been found of the current law, but we are still looking into a specific cause that alerted us to the issue.
— Starbucks Korea Official
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