McDonald's comes down hard on Pokémon scalpers in Japan who are reportedly wasting food

McDonald’s have announced new changes in their sales policy in Japan. The changes come in light of the Pokémon Happy meal, which is set to be offered to customers for the second time on August 15. McDonald’s, through a statement on its website, announced that there would be a limit set on the number of Pokémon Happy Meals one individual or group can order.

In its statement, McDonald’s noted that in the period between August 15 and August 17, each group will be allowed to order no more than 3three sets of meals per transaction. According to the same statement released by McDonald's, the restriction of three meals per transaction will apply to online purchases as well.

As per the statement released by the multinational food joint, the Pokémon Happy Meal will not come along with a limited edition Pokémon card. The corrective measure has been taken by the company in the wake of a disturbing trend, which came to light for the first time when the Pokémon Happy Meal was offered for sale.

What happened when McDonald’s first offered Pokémon Happy Meals in Japan?

August 15 would be the second time that the Pokémon Happy Meal would be offered to McDonald’s customers in Japan in its campaign, titled "Happy Set Pokémon." The first batch of Pokémon Happy Meals was offered for sale on August 9.

According to a report by USA Today, on August 9, when the first Happy Meals were offered for sale, scalpers simply ordered the Happy Meals for the limited edition Pokémon cards that came along with them. As per USA Today, the limited edition cards, which held an important monetary value, were put on sale online at exorbitant prices.

As the motive for buying the McDonald’s special Pokémon Happy Meal was not the food that came with it, there were reports of mass food wastage, as per USA Today. According to the report by the publication, scalpers simply bought the meal to buy the card, and disposed of the food. McDonald’s released a statement shortly after this trend came to light.

According to the statement released by McDonald’s, the company acknowledged and confirmed that some customers ordered large quantities of the Pokémon Happy Meals for the sole objective of reselling the limited edition cards. As a result of such action, a large number of McDonald’s customers had to experience confusion and congestion during their visit to the food outlets in Japan, noted the company.

The company, in its statement, also acknowledged that large quantities of food were either abandoned or disposed of around the food outlets.

The statement contained a couple of other important guidelines that need to be followed. The company communicated that food outlets would “deny purchases” to customers who misbehave or threaten the staff. McDonald’s also shared that it would withhold the sale of the special edition Happy Meal to those customers who are seen queuing at the counter multiple times.

In its latest statement, McDonald’s confirmed that the new batch of Pokémon Happy Meals will come along with a range of five toys to choose from. McDonald’s also shared that, along with withholding the distribution of Pokémon cards, the company is attempting to take a few more corrective measures, which include reaching out to flea market apps. McDonald’s, in its statement, requested that the Flea Market Apps take measures against the hoarding and reselling of Pokémon cards that were distributed as part of the McDonald’s Pokémon Happy Meal campaign.