True or False — “All Publicity is Good Publicity”
A video on TikTok with 1 million views and nearly 4000 comments later Daily Harvest continues to promote the product that made them viral on multiple media platforms.
As a meal delivery service, Daily Harvest offers plant-based, gluten-free, and dairy-free products through a subscription-based model. The brand has earned its popularity among social media platforms and influencers. The brand has received celebrity endorsements from Serena Williams, Gwyneth Paltrow, Shawn White and Bobby Flay.
Infamous Lentil Crumble
Daily Harvest recalled their French Lentil crumble product in June of 2022 after the meal hospitalizes multiple consumers, with symptoms such as debilitating stomach aches, nausea, and gastrointestinal infections.
On further investigation by the brand, it was discovered that it was an ingredient called Tara Flour that was causing all the symptoms and the illness. Seeing Daily Harvest’s debacle, Revive Superfoods, another home delivery-based frozen food company, removed a few of the meals that had the same ingredient in them.
Was this really Daily Harvest's fault?
Personally, if I were one of their customers and had to go through medical procedures because of a food product, I would be upset. I want to say that ‘They did not know’, but then there should be better USFDA regulations for food services. Because, as a generic consumer, I would have assumed that the company took care of it all and is serving healthy food as they promised me they would.
How did Daily Harvest handle this?
The 3 Stages of Crisis Management
Denial
After several posts and comments on their Lentil product, the brand continues to promote it on Instagram.
Vent
‘Voluntary Recall’ with a side of a long caption on Instagram about the steps they are taking. They recommend throwing away the Lentil Crumble product and had launched an investigation into the ingredient and are working parallelly with the FDA and several other labs.
“We have only used this ingredient in French Lentil + Leek Crumbles and we are no longer sourcing from this producer who does not provide any ingredients for our 140+ other items,” wrote Daily Harvest CEO Rachel Dror
But if you look at the comment section, the users, understandably are upset! Many of the customers had not received an email about anything happening and the company took no accountability and very vaguely used the term refund. Refund for what? The order? The hospital bill?
Panic — If you cannot convince them, confuse them
After very wittily trying to blame an ingredient to find their way out of it, and mostly after facing multiple lawsuits from several of the 470 people affected by the products (of which 30 had their gallbladder removed), Daily Harvest, their CEO finally spoke up.
But it seems the brand forgot how to social media. ‘A message from the CEO’ was their go-to strategy on Instagram. From the 27th of June till the 19th of July, all their posts had a similar message. A message from the CEO and finally mentioning the details and the technicalities of the ingredient, which in my opinion is mildly infuriating. As a consumer, I am not going to understand what “ISO 17025” is and I will truly be left confused.
Is all publicity good publicity?
Probably not if brands handle it the way Daily Harvest does. Whether it is an individual or an organization, when a mistake is made, a genuine apology is in order. A brand cannot afford to lie or cover its face in a situation such as the above.
They could have done better.
Voluntary? No. It was a mistake. Just own up to it.
Offer complete transparency. Even if I was one of the customers not impacted by the product, but still use the brand, I would have wanted to know and be kept in the loop.
Offer reimbursement and a path to recovery for your customers that have been hospitalized.
