K-Pop group BTS is seemingly one of the most popular boy band groups in Indonesia. As reported by Koreaboo, the country consumes more BTS content than any other country in the world.
When McDonald's released their BTS Meal, ARMYs were exhilarated causing an outrage among many of the fastfood's outlets in the country. Due to safety measures and COVID restrictions, about 13+ McDonald's restaurants have been shut down in the country.
'BTS' Meal Finally Arrives in Indonesia After a Month Since Launch
The "BTS Meal" was launched back in May and it has grown immense popularity since then. The promotional product features two new dipping sauces, namely Sweet Chili and Cajun on the all-time McDonald's staple fries, McNuggets and Coca-Cola. The meal also has a special limited edition packaging with purple theme.
However, it was only until June 9 that the coveted meal arrived in Indonesia, according to Bandwagon Asia. When it finally came to the country's McDonald's outlets, workers, delivery drivers, and civil workers were surprised by the volume of people squeezing themselves to get the BTS Meal. After hours of the buying frenzy, 13+ restaurants needed to be shut down.
Local Official Says McDonald's Shutdown is Needed for COVID Safety Measures
Since Indonesia is still under partial lockdown due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, most of the buyers booked their orders through on-demand food delivery service such as the country's "Gojek." With so many orders that were put in place, the restaurant was packed to the bring, making it impossible to observe for social distancing.
Local officials have been worried about the safety measures that were violated due to the immense demand of the product in many different outlets. While fandom merch has undeniably contributed well to the country's economy, public officials believe that safety is a far more important factor and that things need to be controlled before it gets worse.
Restaurants around Jakarta and other major areas like Semarang have stopped including the "BTS Meal" in their services aside from temporarily suspending their services.
The Semarang public order agency head issued a public statement regarding the matter saying. "We temporarily closed four of six McDonald's stores here in Semarang for a couple of days."
"I don't want Semarang to be in the COVID-19 red zone again", he added. The official mentions that previously, Semarang city has been on the COVID-19 red zone due to the surge of COVID-19 cases. To prevent the same thing from happening again, officials need to push stringent measures for the people's welfare.
Other local authorities especially in Jakarta have not yet issued a public statement regarding the matter. Furthermore, no statement has been released yet by the famous fastfood chain regarding any further steps for the matter.
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Written by Nikki A.
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