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Kenyans on social media have reacted with anger to a statement by American restaurant chain, Burger King, saying it would continue selling chicken and beef laced with antibiotics to the Kenyan market.
Burger King management had pledged to adopt a policy of sourcing food products that are free from antibiotics for the American and Canadian markets.
Overuse of antibiotics in livestock can cause resistant bacteria to spread, putting humans at risk of developing life-threatening infections.
The practice among producers, unfortunately, has been to give animals antibiotics to encourage quicker growth and caution them from diseases.
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“These Restaurants Brands International commitments relate exclusively to the markets of the US and Canada. Kenya is not concerned,” said Samuel Coulon, communications officer at Servair which has a franchise agreement to run Burger King stores in Kenya.
Burger King currently has four stores in Kenya – at The Hub Mall in Karen, Thika Road Mall, Nextgen Mall along Mombasa Road, and Two Rivers Mall.
The apparent double standards in safety practices was criticized by Kenyans on Twitter, some calling for a boycott of the popular brand.
“WHY would we allow this brand in Kenya ??@BurgerKing do you have no shame? Not good enough for the US & Canada so let’s give #Kenya the antibiotics in chicken & let them deal with the catastrophic effects? Ciiru wrote on Twitter.
"Kenyans pls take note and make your call on Burger King Kenya. Kings of double dealing,” Crime Watch Nairobi said.
“#BoycottBurgerKing ... simple and clear ... or ingest antibiotics from their chicken and develop irreversible resistance to all medication. Inform your loved ones to avoid @BurgerKing #Kenya #ConsumerVoice @MOH_Kenya,” Consumer Federation of Kenya (COFEK) advised.