Pokemon TCG McDonald’s Japan Campaign Draws Disgust And Flak For Food Waste And Chaos

McDonald’s Japan has drawn immense disgust and flak from its ongoing Pokemon TCG campaign in Japan.

The company has been giving out Pokemon TCG cards with exclusive McDonald’s designs during a three-day period from August 9, 2025. In order to combat scalpers, prior to the start of the campaign, McDonald’s Japan also announced that it will limit the purchase of Happy Meal sets to 5 sets per customer, requested customers not to purchase Happy Meals that they couldn’t finish, and asked everyone not to resell these products on online flea markets.

Unsurprisingly, the company’s announcement fell on deaf ears. McDonald’s chains all over the country attracted long lines of customers, with many Japanese claiming that most were scalpers from China seeking to make a profit.

Police were called in to stop fighting among customers and scalpers. At one location, a scalper attempted to return the Happy Meals they had purchased because they didn’t come with any Pokemon TCG cards, and the police was called to intervene:

Aside from the long lines, fighting, and scalping, many people were shocked and horrified by the amount of food waste generated from the campaign. Plastic bags full of uneaten Happy Meals were abandoned on the streets and restaurants, as the scalpers only wanted the Pokemon TCG cards. A horde of pigeons were happily feasting outside one McDonald’s location.

Videos and photos of scalpers loading Pokemon TCG products onto vehicles were also shared on social media.

Videos and photos of Chinese scalpers sharing their loot have also been spreading on social media:

It’s clear that many people are angry with McDonald’s Japan. Some Japanese users said that they were disgusted by how greedy McDonald’s were, using the campaign to attract scalpers and profit off them. Some have vowed to never eat at McDonald’s again after this incident.

The Pokemon TCG cards are being resold for at least 2,000 yen a pack (USD13+), making them a very profitable venture. The cost of a Happy Meal in Japan is around 500 yen (USD3.50+).

At the time of writing, most if not all McDonald’s locations in Japan have run out of Pokemon TCG cards.

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