[EXCLUSIVE] Chinese restaurants ditch Tsingtao over 'pee-gate'

Industry

Published: 24 Oct. 2023, 13:38 Updated: 24 Oct. 2023, 18:46

[EXCLUSIVE] Chinese restaurants ditch Tsingtao over 'pee-gate'

Bottles of Tsingtao beer are displayed at a Chinese food restaurant in Sangam-dong, western Seoul. [PARK EUN-JEE]

Restaurants and consumers in Korea are ditching Tsingtao beer after a video of a factory worker peeing in its brewery in China went viral.

A number of restaurants, mostly Chinese, are trying to get refunds for the Tsingtao beer they purchased since the video circulated online, but the Korean importer has denied the request.

No urine in exported Tsingtao, Korean importer says

A server at a major Chinese restaurant in Sangam-dong, western Seoul, said Tuesday that a representative from the importer visited the restaurant on Monday to "check how things are going."

"I asked if we can get a refund for the Tsingtao beer we already bought, but [the representative] said that's not possible," she added, saying the restaurant's diners ask for beer from other brands, sometimes even taking their orders for Tsingtao beer back.

She said other restaurants are considering asking for refunds.

Tsingtao claims the largest market share among imported beers as of the first half of this year.

But not all restaurants are alarmed by the video.

Some restaurants have not seen any changes with one owner of a malatang chain restaurant in Sangam, western Seoul, saying “there has been no differences in sales for Tsingtao over the weekend.” Another malatang restaurant owner, also operating in Sangam, said that while she is not sure, she did not think there has been much difference.

Tsingtao beers displayed in a market on Monday. [YONHAP]

Sales of Tsingtao beer at convenience stores are also nosediving following the leakage of the video.

Compared to last week, the sales for the beer went down by 26.2 percent at one convenience store chain and decreased by 20 and 13 percent at two other chains, according to local media outlets Monday.

BK, the Korean importer of the beer brand, said Saturday in a statement that the beer producer confirmed that it "operates separate manufacturing facilities for domestic and export products," adding the factory in the video makes beer for the Chinese market.

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said, "Beer produced in the factory in question is not imported into [Korea]," noting the factory is not registered as one of the company's overseas manufacturing sites for its exports to Korea.

Chinese authorities are looking into the case, according to a public relations representative of the Korean importer, adding that the factory in question has been shut down.

Sales of other foreign beer brands have jumped, with Budweiser's sales going up 35.2 percent and those of Stella by 36.4 percent compared to last week.

Shares for Tsingtao dropped from 81 yuan to 75 yuan as the Shanghai Stock Exchange opened its trading session on Monday. The market cap slid by 6.7 billion yuan (1.2 trillion won). Shares rose back to 80 yuan by the afternoon.

BY PARK EUN-JEE, KIM JU-YEON [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]