Donated and Received 'White Fat' as a Return Gift... Controversial Company Contract Terminated

"Two-thirds of the Samgyeopsal was removed"
Incheon Michuhol-gu "Will not renew contract with gift agreement company this year"

A company that faced criticism for sending pork belly full of fat as a thank-you gift under the Hometown Love Donation Program was ultimately terminated from its agreement with the local government in charge. The Hometown Love Donation Program is a system where donors contribute to their hometown and receive thank-you gifts in return.

Michuhol-gu, Incheon City, announced on the 23rd that it did not renew the agreement this year with Company A, which was a thank-you gift partner from February to December last year under the Hometown Love Donation Program. Among the five companies that signed agreements with Michuhol-gu in February last year, Company A was the only one not to renew the contract. As a result, the number of thank-you gift options in Michuhol-gu decreased from 13 items from 5 companies last year to 10 items from 4 companies this year. A Michuhol-gu official said, "The quality issues of the thank-you gift involved in this incident had a considerable impact on the decision not to renew the agreement with Company A," adding, "There have been no complaints regarding thank-you gifts from other companies."

Samgyeopsal received as a thank-you gift by a hometown love donor in Michuhol-gu, Incheon.
[Image source=Online community]

Previously, in December last year, Company A caused controversy by sending a set of pork belly and neck meat with a large amount of fat mixed in to donors of the Hometown Love Donation Program. When a donor posted a photo of pork belly mostly covered with white fat on an online community, netizens criticized the company in the comments.

The donor stated, "I donated because Michuhol-gu offered pork belly and neck meat, and I received thank-you gifts using the points I earned," adding, "The neck meat came with lean meat and was edible, but two-thirds of the pork belly had to be trimmed and discarded." The donor continued, "They placed the parts that looked okay on top when packaging, so I felt worse when I removed the plastic," and added, "For those receiving thank-you gifts through the Hometown Love Donation Program, it would be better to receive processed products rather than fresh meat." After receiving an official apology request from Michuhol-gu, Company A checked the donor’s order details and exchanged the product for a new one, and it is understood that they also apologized in person.

A post uploaded by a hometown love donor on the internet. [Image source=online community]

Following this controversy, Michuhol-gu has requested all companies to strictly manage the quality of their thank-you gifts. A Michuhol-gu official said, "We plan to discover other thank-you gift companies and sign agreements for the Hometown Love Donation Program in the first half of this year."

The Hometown Love Donation Program, implemented on January 1, allows individuals to donate up to 5 million KRW annually to their hometown or other local governments, receive tax deductions, and obtain thank-you gifts worth up to 30% of their donation. The program was introduced to foster a healthy culture of donation to hometowns and to revitalize the local economy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.