Earlier this week, Uber Eats dropped a star-studded new ad featuring David and Victoria Beckham, Usher, Jelly Roll, Jennifer Aniston, and David Schwimmer. But the Friends reunion part of the ad isn't all the internet is talking about.
The food-delivery app is coming under fire after making light of peanut allergies, BBC reports. In the controversial scene, a man is seen eating peanut butter straight from the jar. He says, "There's peanuts in peanut butter?" His eyes are swollen and his face is covered in hives. "Oh, it's the primary ingredient."
The Food Allergy & Research Education (FARE) organization, a non-profit that raises awareness around food allergies, called out Uber Eats after an online backlash started gaining steam.
"We are incredibly disappointed by Uber Eats use of life-threatening food allergies as humor in its Super Bowl ad. The suffering of 33M+ Americans with this condition is no joke," FARE wrote on social media shortly after the ad hit TVs. "Life-threatening food allergy is a disease, not a diet. Tell @ubereats and @nfl that enough is enough. 📣 Awareness is key to driving change!"
FARE CEO Dr. Sung Poblete spoke out on the controversy separately, adding, "We ask the entertainment industry and the sports industry to watch FARE’s documentary and learn why this disease is so devastating."
"These types of commercials and types of jokes allow kids to think that there's not going to be any harm and it's going to be funny," she continued.
Food Allergy Canada similarly spoked out about the commercial and asked Uber Eats to edit the ad. It's "no laughing matter," the organization wrote on Twitter.
And now it's clear that the public outcry was successful. The publication Allergic Living reported Friday afternoon that Uber Eats agreed to remove the peanut allergy scene from the ad.
“FARE would like to thank Uber for listening to our community and making the changes to their Super Bowl ad. After talking with them today, I believe we have a new ally in helping us navigate our journey with our disease," Poblete said in a statement.
Food Allergy Canada announced the victory in a tweet: "Uber Eats to change their #SuperBowl ad to remove the segment about peanut allergy. This is great news for the #foodallergy community. Thanks to all of you who helped to make this happen!"
The public had taken to social media to share their outrage over the commercial, too. "Not so funny if you have a child with a peanut allergy. Terribly insensitive to make a joke out of a life threatening allergy," one user wrote on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter).
"Hey @UberEats Remember the recent death of dancer Órla Baxendale who died from her peanut allergy? ... Millions of us have this condition and I can assure you, there is nothing funny about it. Just ask Órla’s parents," another user wrote.
"I am totally disgusted by this! Removing the Uber Eats app from my phone," a third person chimed in. "As a mom of a Peanut/Tree Nut Allergy daughter I can’t even understand what kind of humor is this! Does Uber Eats staff or the Advt agency staff have no idea about the constant stress under which we live!"
