Lion's den: Ankerkraut deal with Nestlé causes disastrous echo - "soul sold to the devil"
Created: 04/14/2022, 12:15 p.m
By: Patricia Huber
Due to the sale to Nestlé, Ankerkraut is now being heavily criticized.
© Karl F. Schöfmann/Imago Images
Nestlé takes over the majority of the Hamburg spice manufacturer Ankerkraut.
But customers and cooperation partners are not at all enthusiastic about it.
Hamburg - On Wednesday, the spice company Ankerkraut announced that the food company Nestlé is now the main shareholder.
While the founders describe this move as "a great opportunity," the deal largely falls through with most observers and fans.
On social media platforms like Twitter or Instagram, many users don't give a damn about the deal of the "Lion's Den" start-up.
And even on the LinkedIn job platform, which is otherwise known for its predominantly positive comments, the deal has met with unusually harsh criticism.
Ankerkraut and Nestlé: Takeover causes a shitstorm
The comments below the company's announcement post are unequivocal.
“You sold your soul to the devil”, “When greed eats your brain – never more Ankerkraut in my kitchen” or “Unfortunately, I took a wrong turn and crashed into the wall” are just a few of hundreds of comments from disappointed customers .
But not only consumers are disappointed.
A large cooperation partner has also made it clear with a public statement what he thinks of the news.
The YouTube star LeFloid, who regularly inspires several million subscribers with his videos, actually had a cooperation with Ankerkraut.
But since the Nestle deal, that's probably history.
On Instagram he writes: "Since a cooperation with Nestlé is out of the question for us, we see no other option than to end the cooperation with Ankerkraut as soon as possible."
LeFloid has received a lot of support from his fans.
A user writes: “Right decision.
It's a shame about the store, but there are certainly alternatives with more backbone." Another says: "Hats off to this decision.
Personally, I think it's absolutely right and exemplary of you, especially considering the 'impact' of the decision for you.” In fact, LeFloid even launched their own spice called “Holy Smokes” with Ankerkraut.
How the YouTuber's spice mixture will continue is not yet known.
Nestlé: Heavy criticism over water scandal
But why do so many consumers resist the food giant Nestlé?
The group gained its dubious reputation through numerous scandals.
The former President of the Nestle Board of Directors, Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, caused what is probably the greatest damage to image in an interview from 2005. At that time he spoke about water and explained that this raw material has a market value and is therefore not a public good.
From this, most listeners concluded that Brabeck-Letmathe does not see water as a human right.
On its website, however, the group rows back: “At Nestlé we firmly believe that access to water is a fundamental human right.
We fully recognize the human right to water, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2010.” Regarding the relevant interview, it says: “The interview in the video is an excerpt from a documentary from 2005, which is out of context was torn.
This excerpt misrepresents the view of our Chairman Emeritus. He has repeatedly said that all people have the right to clean water to meet their hydration and basic hygiene needs.”
Nestlé: Always new scandals
Nestlé is also heavily criticized for buying water rights.
The problem: where Nestlé taps the water, it becomes scarce.
This is a big problem in the French village of Vittel*.
The groundwater level continues to fall - the villagers protest.
There are also other scandals about milk powder for babies, criticism about the excessive sugar content in the products and the mountains of rubbish caused by Nespresso coffee capsules.
So there are many reasons why consumers may choose not to buy Nestlé products.
The bad reputation of the large corporation is now also the fatality of the originally small start-up Ankerkraut.
(ph) *Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.