This Olympics, McDonald’s claims the word “burger,” forcing native pavilion to rewrite its menu
Olympic attendees stopping in at the Four Host First Nations pavilion in Vancouver this weekend should look for “sliders” or “bannockwiches” (bison patties with wild mushrooms and Saltspring goat cheese between bannock rounds)—just not burgers. The organizing committee, VANOC, has decided to eliminate the word “burger” from the FHFN pavilion at the behest of McDonald’s, a major sponsor of the Games. Bill Cooper, VANOC’s head of commercial rights management, told the National Post that “there are a number of guidelines…at all designated 2010 Games celebration sites, of which the FHFN pavilion is one.” The rules forbid “certain brands or words that create special associations with our sponsors and their products.” The guidelines are enforced to protect sponsors’ “significant commitment and investment.”
The Lil’wat, Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations, who legally share a portion of Olympic territory, agreed to abide by all Olympic rules in a general protocol agreement signed in 2004. This is “the first time in history that indigenous peoples have been recognized by the IOC as official partners in the hosting of a Games,” said an FHFN spokesperson. Such agreements have never exactly been sacrosanct, but the native group agreed to the request from McDonald’s without complaint.
• Olympic chef renames his ‘bison burgers’ after McDonald’s objects [National Post]
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