Supermarket giant Coles, Target and Kmart have joined Woolworths in removing celebrity chef Pete Evans’ products from shelves after controversial posts he put up on social media.
A spokesperson confirmed Coles has removed Evan’s simmer sauces, books and other items after he posted a cartoon with a symbol linked to neo-Nazis and the Christchurch massacre.
Evans posted the illustration of a caterpillar and a butterfly chatting over a drink to his social media followers yesterday.
In the image, the butterfly has a “black sun” symbol on its wings while the caterpillar wears a pro-Trump Make America Great Again red hat.
The black sun mark is a known Nazi symbol which the Christchurch mass-shooter had emblazoned on his backpack. The post has since been deleted.
Coles Group told Nine.com.au they were concerned by statements made by Evans and have decided to remove his range from their shelves.
“Coles is committed to providing a safe and inclusive environment in which to work and shop,” a spokesperson said.
“We have no direct business relationship with Pete Evans, however we currently stock a small number of products from suppliers who have licensing agreements with him.
“We have spoken to these suppliers who share our concerns regarding recent statements made by Mr Evans and are in discussions regarding the removal of these products from our range.”
Nine.com.au confirmed Woolworths Group had also pulled Evans’ books from the shelves of its Big W stores from today.
“We appreciate the community concern over recent comments,” the company said in the statement.
“Woolworths Supermarkets has conveyed its own concerns directly with supplier Raw C, who subsequently advised its relationship with Pete Evans ended earlier this year.
“BIG W reviews its range of books regularly to ensure they’re aligned with its values. It has decided to remove Pete Evans’ book titles from the BIG W range from 17 November in line with Pan Macmillan’s offer.
“As always, we would encourage our customers to follow the expert medical advice from health authorities.”
Woolworths Supermarkets has no direct business relationship with Evans.
The retail dumping comes after Evans’ publisher Pan Macmillan Australia moved to distance itself from the author.
“Pan Macmillan does not support the recent posts made by Pete Evans. Those views are not our views as a company or the views of our staff,” the publishing company said in a statement.
“Pan Macmillan is currently finalising its contractual relationship with Pete Evans and as such will not be entering any further publishing agreements moving forward.
“If any retailer wishes to return Pete Evans’ books please contact Pan Macmillan.”
Evans has apologised online for any misunderstanding.
“Sincere apologies to anyone who misinterpreted a previous post of a caterpillar and a butterfly having a chat over a drink and perceived that I was promoting hatred,” Evans said in a post.
“I look forward to studying all of the symbols that have ever existed and research them thoroughly before posting.”
He accompanied the post with an image of a multi-coloured heart.
“Hopefully this symbol resonates deeply into the hearts of ALL,” he wrote.
The axing of his book and publishing deal comes just days after Queensland Health issued an urgent food recall for the ‘Pete Evans Healthy Everyday Jamaican Simmer Sauce’.
In April, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) fine the Peter Evans Chef Pty Ltd $25,200 following advertisements for a ‘BioCharger’ device which Mr Evans claimed could be used to treat “Wuhan Coronavirus”.
*story by ninensm