The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2021
Nongfu Spring marketed a 'Fukushima white peach' soda, then denied using it
Nongfu Spring touted 'Fukushima white peach' flavour, then denied using any. The flip-flop made the ban a headline.
Nongfu Spring (农夫山泉)
What happened
In June 2021, Nongfu Spring launched 拂晓白桃味苏打气泡水 (a 'Fukushima white peach' sparkling water) and promoted it with the line '拂晓白桃产自日本福岛县' — the white peach comes from Japan's Fukushima prefecture. The marketing leaned on the prized Japanese peach as a premium ingredient.
China banned food imports from Fukushima after the 2011 nuclear disaster, so the claim set off consumer alarm that the drink violated the ban. The market-supervision bureau in Jiande, where the product is made, opened an investigation.
Nongfu Spring first insisted the flavour was authentic, then issued a statement that it had only 'created' the flavour and imported no ingredients from Fukushima. Jiande authorities confirmed the materials were not sourced from Fukushima. The brand deleted the copy and pulled the product, but only after the embarrassing flip-flop — marketing a forbidden origin, then denying it ever used it — had run through the news cycle.
Why it happened
- The origin was a marketing hook, not a sourcing fact: the brand used a prestigious 'Fukushima white peach' to sell a flavour it never imported.
- No one checked the red line before launch: Fukushima food imports are banned and sensitive in China, yet the claim shipped to shelves.
- The response contradicted the claim: after promoting the Fukushima origin, the brand had to deny having any Fukushima ingredients at all.
- The regulator's all-clear did not repair the damage: proof that no Fukushima material was used only showed the origin claim was decorative.
The lesson
A place-name is not a flavour. Marketing a banned and sensitive origin as a premium ingredient guarantees the brand must later disown its own advertising.
Sources
- 央视网 — '农夫山泉回应拂晓白桃味苏打气泡水：原料无从日本福岛采购', 2021-06-27
- 澎湃新闻 — '农夫山泉拂晓白桃味苏打气泡水因'福岛产'宣传引关注，当地市场监管介入', 2021-06-27
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