What it had to solve
Lacta, the Brazilian chocolate brand owned by Mondelez, released a short Easter campaign piece built on the line 'Quem faz a decoração da Páscoa merece um presente de Páscoa' — whoever does the Easter decorating deserves an Easter gift.
The idea
A ten-second spot gifted 'whoever does the Easter decorating' — staged as a white hand passing a Lacta box to a Black recipient, a framing viewers read as racist
How it works
The ten-second film opens on that line, then shows a white hand passing a box with a Lacta product to a Black person, suggesting the decoration work is done by the person receiving the gift. A user posted a screen recording on Twitter; it went viral and criticism escalated until the brand responded.
What it did
Mondelez withdrew the piece from circulation and issued a statement: 'The Lacta brand got it wrong and the piece was taken off air', pledging to strengthen anti-racism awareness and practice internally and with its suppliers.
Background
In the week before Easter 2023, Mondelez's Brazilian chocolate brand Lacta released a ten-second ad built on a simple premise: 'Whoever does the Easter decoration deserves an Easter gift.' The film shows a white hand passing a box containing a Lacta product to a Black person — staging that implied the decoration work was done by the person receiving the gift.
After a Twitter user posted a screen recording, the piece went viral and viewers called its framing racist; many demanded an explanation of the ad. The criticism reached the business press within days.
Mondelez responded with a statement to Valor Econômico: 'A marca Lacta errou e a peça foi retirada do ar' — the Lacta brand got it wrong and the piece was taken off air — adding that the company would strengthen anti-racist awareness and practice internally and among its suppliers, and that it 'vehemently repudiates any type of racism, prejudice and discrimination'.
Why it lands
It shows how ten seconds of unexamined staging can undo a seasonal campaign: the backlash came from the picture, not the line.
The response became a reference pattern: withdraw fast, admit the error plainly, name concrete internal action.
It marks how brand control has moved to audiences — a single screen recording outpaced the media plan.
What you can take
A casting choice is a message too: if the setup only works when the Black character is the one serving, ten seconds of charm cost more than they bought.
Since then
The piece was withdrawn and the apology stood as the company's public position. Valor's report appeared on 5 April 2023; no sales impact or personnel consequences were reported.
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