Cadbury responds to row over beef in chocolates, says India products 100% veg

Cadbury has issued a clarification after a screenshot claiming that the company uses gelatin in some of their products went viral on social media over the weekend, asking consumers to verify facts before sharing them.

“The screenshot shared in the Tweet is not related to Mondelez/Cadbury products manufactured in India. All the products manufactured and sold in India are 100% vegetarian. The green dot on the wrapper signifies that,” Cadbury said on Sunday.

Cadbury also said negative posts can hurt its image. “As you can well imagine, negative posts like these, damages consumer confidence in our well-respected and loved brands. We request our consumers to please verify facts related to our products before sharing them further.”

The clarification by the British multinational company, which is owned by Mondelez International, came after hundreds of users on Twitter called for a boycott of Cadbury products. Their boycott call came after a screenshot from a website saying that if a product contains gelatine as an ingredient, that means it was derived from beef, was shared widely on social media.

“Only #boycottcadbury Won't do. Must be penalize for playing with religious beliefs and law of the country (displaying green dot on wrapers) inspite of animal source is added ,” one Twitter user said.

“@DairyMilkIn can you clarify the emulsifiers used in the products are plant based or animal based with proof. Because @fssaiindia clarified in RTI that they don't have any method to check whether emulsifiers are vegetarian or not,” another user tweeted.

“Is this true @CadburyUK? If yes, Cadbury deserves to be sued for forcing Hindus to consume halaal certified beef products. Our ancestors & Gurus sacrificed their lives but didn’t accept eating beef. But post “independence” rulers have allowed our Dharma to be violated with impunity,” Delhi-based academic and rights activist Madhu Purnima Kishwar also tweeted.

As more and more people shared the screenshot and commented on the issue, Cadbury Dairy Milk tweeted its clarification and responded to Twitter users. Some users even pointed out that the screenshot being shared is that of Cadbury Australia’s website.