News: Schumacher vegetable joke withdrawn from Carambar sweet wrappers
The confectionery that leaves a bad taste
FRENCH CONFECTIONERY maker Carambar has withdrawn a long-standing joke referring to Michael Schumacher from the inside of sweet wrappers after a fan pointed out an unfortunate gaffe on Twitter.
The joke, which has been in circulation for years, is a pun on the F1 star’s name. It poses the question, “Quel légume va très vite et rigole dans les virages?“, or “What vegetable goes very fast and laughs when cornering? The punchline reads, “Reponse: Le chou marreur (Schumacher).” This translates as, “Answer: The funny cabbage (Schumacher)”.
Schumacher was involved in a skiing accident in December and has since been in an induced coma at University Hospital, Grenoble. With the former F1 star in such a condition, one fan found the joke offensive and pointed it out in a tweet.
Realising the potential for a social media outcry, Carambar responded with message: “This joke has been pulled from production and will not be used on any future packets.”
According to France-based English language newspaper The Connexion, the sweet is famous for the poor quality of the jokes on the inside of its wrappers. Last year, the company hit the headlines when it announced it was withdrawing all jokes from the inside wrappers, only to later reveal the announcement was a joke.
The most recent statement from his management last Thursday said that 45-year-old Schumacher is still “in a waking up process”.
“We are aware that the wake up phase can take a long time,” it read.
