Parents Say Pornographic Candy Wrappers Are Not All That Sweet
Categories: Kids 5-7, In The News, Weird But True
A dad was disturbed by what he saw on his kids' candy wrapper. Credit: Europics / CEN
Simon Simpkins of West Yorkshire was at the market shopping with his wife. They decided to buy some Haribo brand Maoam (pronounced ma-o-am) candy for their children, according to London's Daily Mail.
Then he noticed the labels.
Simpkins' quotes, from the Daily Mail, are perfectly priceless and brilliantly British. "The lemon and lime are locked in what appears to be a carnal encounter," the chap said. "The lime, whom I assume to be the gentleman in this coupling, has a particularly lurid expression on his face."
Are these wrappers inappropriate or just silly? Credit: Europics / CEN
Simpkins caused quite a row (American translation: made a fuss), having a "heated exchange" with the store manager, according to the Daily Mail. His wife, "became quite distressed and had to sit down in the car park." (In America, we call that a parking lot.)
A spokesperson for Haribo, the German candy maker that manufactures the offending sweets, told the Mail that, "This jovial Maoam man is very popular with fans, both young and old."
Based on those pictures, we can see why he would be popular. The company slogan, by the way, is "Kids and grown-ups love it so, the happy world of Haribo." Haribo, which is an acronym for Hans Reigel, Bonn, the founder and the company's headquarters, made its name in the United States when it introduced gummi bears in the 1980's.
Further digging on the Haribo website found the sound of a moaning man on Planet Haribo, the company's interactive play space for kids. Since it's a pop-up window, we can't link to it, but go to the candy company's site yourself and take a listen.
"Ever since I was a little girl, Maoam had funny TV commercials for kids," said Dagmar Kappel, a German teacher now living stateside, and the friend of a ParentDish staffer. "That's what they are known for."
What do you think? Are the candy labels offensive? Or sweet?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 10)
Melissa 8-27-2009 @ 3:33PM
Ummmm....maybe over here it would be offensive, but for God's sake they have nudity in their commercials in England!!
Reply
Will 8-29-2009 @ 3:05PM
They do?? I'm moving there!!! LoL
Mark 8-30-2009 @ 4:25PM
48% of people responding to the poll need to get a life.
Andrea 8-29-2009 @ 9:28PM
I hear that after watching some of the tv shows from england no wonder the dad saw it as pornographic.
NYCBruce 8-29-2009 @ 9:50PM
More "nanny-staters" trying to control was the rest of the world does or sees. Simon, if you don't like what's on the wrapper-- DON'T PURCHASE THE CANDY! It's a simple as that. But DON'T try and prevent everyone else from exercising their OWN right to make a decision. God, I'm tired of fundmentalists!!!
PinkThenred 8-29-2009 @ 11:25PM
Don't buy it then. There IS more candy ya know? LOL
poot 8-30-2009 @ 9:55AM
Do people have sex in those commercials? No? Then it's not the same thing.
Misty 8-30-2009 @ 12:36AM
It's kind of obvious that the issue here is one of what is culturally perceived as being obscene in two different areas. I am of German/American descent and my interpretation of it is that by European standards for the most part it wouldn't be thought of as being obscene, but by American standards it probably would be. Perhaps the manufacturer would want to consider a different packaging for those of it's products which are shipped to the U.S.
samjordanlloyd 8-30-2009 @ 5:39AM
We dont....
toadee 8-30-2009 @ 7:55AM
we do? where?
pcwalt 8-30-2009 @ 11:18PM
To all who think this is so innocent: would you want your child in the position of the cherry or the lemon? The shape of the nose, the hands, and the feet are cartoon suggestions that the lime is male. (And the shape of the nose is a cartoon clue that the lemon is female.) And those little marks at each end (left and right) of the picture are standard cartoon indications of motion -- in this case, back and forth motion from left to right, to left. Five-year-olds may not understand this, until somebody else at school explains it to them
mike 9-01-2009 @ 11:05AM
this is something else that people can bitch about let it be a child that young to eat candy wont know what that means anyway and honestly its how you look at it people need to get a life
Vickers 9-01-2009 @ 1:26PM
there isn't it's either sofas or some loan company
Jamie 8-27-2009 @ 11:53PM
No small child would imagine these images as sexual. I would bet that if you showed this candy to my 5 year old, all he would see is candy. I don't believe I will have to explain why the pickle is licking the cherry for a long time. I helped host a Halloween party for children and did not want the song "I want Candy" playing in the background as it might offend the parents (wasn't too worried about what the kids might think). Kids do not think the same way that adults do. That is a good thing. What is disturbing to me is the Cinnamon Toast Crunch commercial where the cereal is cannibalistic. Don't forget they do lick each other (Gasp!). Anything could be misconstrued to offend another. Remember the kids are focused on what is under the wrapper and not on top of it (see what I did there, oops).
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Will 8-29-2009 @ 2:04PM
That's a good point. Although teens would get a chuckle I'm sure. LoL Oh well!!
Lisa Pincoski 8-29-2009 @ 9:53PM
I agree glad you wrote it and saved me the time:) Great minds think alike. The only thing "Dirty" about is the parents mind....sure was teaching a good lesson there.. Oh well things like this is what makes the world around us happen...we need to teach our children about the IMPORTANT lessons about life.
mrs. pineapple 8-29-2009 @ 9:12PM
i believe that if this candy tastes good give it to a child. if you dont want them to see the wrapper just take it off before you give it to them.
Avice 8-29-2009 @ 9:19PM
When my boys were in Cub Scouts, the leader's son, who was the same age as mine, said some pretty lascivious things to them. Of course the leader, good "Christian" as she was, only saw my sons as the problem. Anyway, the things he was saying were things kids that age would not be thought to know about but he did.
kitten 8-29-2009 @ 9:51PM
just a reminder: its not a pickle, its a lime.! its cherry/lime flavor and lemon/lime.....
katie 8-29-2009 @ 11:05PM
yeah teens wud gt a chuckle but then again we laugh @ evrithin lol