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Uber Eats announced that they were editing their Super Bowl commercial after they amassed backlash for ridiculing food allergies. The Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) non-profit organization was one of the many who opined that joking about a peanut allergy is insensitive.
Although the advertisement garnered criticism online, others believed that the removal of the joke was unnecessary. One netizen opined:
Earlier this week, Uber Eats released a star-studded advertisement that featured Jennifer Anniston, David Schwimmer, Victoria and David Beckham, Usher, and Jelly Roll. The premise of the advertisement was that the food delivery application not only aims to make profits but also reminds viewers that their service goes beyond delivery.
In one of their scenes, a man was seen eating a spoonful of peanut butter straight out of the jar while reading a label. He said, “There’s peanuts in peanut butter?” As the commercial progresses, one can see his face show the symptoms of an allergic reaction, with one eye swelling and the actor’s skin breaking into hives.
After the commercial gained traction, FARE released a statement announcing that they were disappointed to see Uber Eats make fun of “life-threatening food allergies as humor.” They also added:
“Life-threatening food allergy is a disease, not a diet.”
Organizations blast Uber Eats after Super Bowl commercial gains traction online
Food Allergy Canada also released a statement similar to that of FARE’s by saying that food allergies are “no laughing matter.”
Dr. Purvi Parikh, an immunologist and allergist with the Allergy & Asthma Network, said in an interview that it was an ill-calculated move by Uber Eats to mock forgetting food allergies that can result in life-threatening symptoms not only in adults but also in children. Parikh revealed:
“Deaths occur due to these ‘forgotten ingredients’ and exposures, most recently … an NYC dancer who died because peanut was not disclosed as an ingredient.”
Allergy UK also took to X to express disappointment in the Uber food app for misrepresenting food allergies. The CEO of the organization, Burton Paul, said in a statement that the advertisement was “offensive” to numerous people living with food allergies. The company also urged them to pull the commercial.
Evidently, many were unimpressed with the Super Bowl advertisement. Some netizens also wrote online:
Despite the criticism, several netizens found the backlash peculiar. They opined that the advertisement was simply a light-hearted quip.
“Lighten up”: Netizens take to social media to question the backlash
Several netizens took to different social networking sites, including Reddit, Instagram, and X, to opine that the commercial was not as serious as many made it to be. A few comments read:
Twitter users also took to the social networking site to opine that the backlash against the advertisement was unnecessary.
Despite many believing that the commercial was fine as it was, Uber Eats confirmed through FARE that they were making changes to the same. FARE CEO Sung Poblete released a statement announcing that she was in contact with senior executives from Uber Eats, who said that they were going to edit the commercial.
The new advertisement is likely to air during the February 11 Super Bowl.
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