Himalaya Salt Sports Candy manufacturer warns of counterfeit products

Manufacturer of Himalaya Salt Sports Candy, BIG FOOT Malaysia, has warned consumers of counterfeit products. In a Facebook post which garnered 2.8k reactions, 5.9k comments and 24k shares at the time of writing, BIG FOOT pointed out that the font type for the words "Increase hydration", "Throat soothing" and "Fresh breath" were different between the two products. In fact, the font on the counterfeit product was slightly skewed.The post added that the genuine product does not have any gaps between the words "Delfi Marketing Sdn Bhd" and the company's address. On the counterfeit product, however, there was a gap between the company's name and its address. BIG FOOT also said that the back of the genuine product should read "Manufacture in Malaysia by", whereas the counterfeit one says "Manufacturer in Malaysia by". Also, the expiry date printed on the genuine product is bolded while that is not the case for the counterfeit product. According to BIG FOOT, the lot number on the counterfeit product "Lot:19C02" does not exist in the company's tracing system.Netizens mocked the company for its poor command of English and grammar, saying that "Manufacture in Malaysia by" should instead be "Manufactured in Malaysia by". They also pointed out a grammar error in the sentence "Moreover, Lot:19C02 is not exist in our company tracing system.", adding that the phrase instead should be "does not exist".Meanwhile, some netizens urged Delfi Marketing to post a list of shops selling the genuine Himalaya Salt Sports Candy, while others said they will avoid the candy altogether for their personal safety. Meanwhile, others also commented that they bought the counterfeit product from places such as Lazada and Shell station, adding that the candy tastes the same despite being fake.Counterfeit products are not new to the industry and consumers have constantly been warned by brands to beware. Earlier this year, Samsung China terminated its partnership with Supreme Italia after being called out for associating with a copycat brand. Supreme Italia reportedly had no association with popular street wear brand Supreme other than the strikingly similar logo. Samsung had originally intended to create exclusive technology products for Supreme Italia’s launch in China.Across the border, LEGO also saw itself unwittingly caught up in the issue of counterfeit sets being sold at a Singapore retail store and on eCommerce sites in 2017. The counterfeit sets feature toys which looked like terrorists from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), and were on sale at People’s Park Centre and Carousell. Recommended for children aged six to 12, the counterfeit LEGO sets were labelled as “Falcon commando” sets and portrayed violent scenes showing figurines carrying the ISIS flag, firing AK-47s and launching sticks of dynamite, as well as a figurine of a decapitated head.(Photo courtesy: BIG FOOT Malaysia Facebook page)