Candy-coated controversy: 6 foods in trouble for activism

Usually the only controversy surrounding an Oreo is, do you lick it before you dunk it? 

But now the "World's Favorite Cookie" is facing some real heat after unveiling a gay pride themed Oreo on its Facebook page. 

According to the Chicago Tribune, Kraft posted a picture of an Oreo filled with six layers of frosting in the colors of the rainbow flag which symbolizes gay pride. The photo caption read,  "June 25 | Pride. Proudly support love!" 

As of today, the post has more than 228,000 "likes" and over 38,000 comments. Some positive, some negative. 

"The Bible does say that God loves everyone on earth, so much so that he sent his only begotten son, Jesus, to die for everyone. And I don't hate you if you're gay, but it is an abomination according to the Bible," one commenter wrote. 

"I'm boycotting every Kraft product, which are many, from the website I found with a list, and passing the word along. Bad move Kraft, keep your politics private," another wrote. 

While Oreo may be in the hot seat now, it isn't the first food company to face criticism, and it certainly won't be the last. Here are six other tasty treats that came under fire for supporting, or not supporting, a cause. 

5. Skittles

After the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, thousands of people took to Skittles' Facebook wall asking why the company had yet to publicly support the Martin family. At the time of his death, Martin was carrying an iced tea and a bag of Skittles. 

On March 22, the company finally released a statement that read:

"We are deeply saddened by the news of Trayvon Martin’s death and express our sincere condolences to his family and friends. We also respect their privacy and feel it inappropriate to get involved or comment further as we would never wish for our actions to be perceived as an attempt of commercial gain following this tragedy.”

4. Hebrew Hotdogs

The king of all Kosher meats may not be Kosher after all. A new lawsuit alleges that Hebrew National Hotdogs may not be made under the strict Kosher guidelines. 

On June 19, GlobalPost reported the lawsuit, against ConAgra foods, alleges that AER employees witnessed practices at the slaughterhouses that violated kosher laws. But when the AER employees complained about this to their superiors, they were fired or mistreated for speaking out, American Jewish World reported.

3. Pepsi

In one of the more bizarre claims, Pepsi was forced to reveal part of its secret recipe after reports surfaced that the company used aborted fetus cells in its soda. 

The rumor began after PepsiCo announced its partnership with Senomyx Inc., a San Diego biotech company accused of developing flavor enhancers using cell lines taken from the kidney of an aborted fetus, according to the Washington Times. 

In a statement to the Washington Times, a Pepsi spokesman wrote: 

"PepsiCo does not conduct or fund research, including research performed by third parties, that utilizes any human tissue or cell lines derived from embryos or fetuses. We clearly communicate this in our Responsible Research Statement on our website. Any research funded by PepsiCo and conducted by Senomyx for PepsiCo must abide by this responsible research statement.”

2. Starbucks

The home of the mermaid came under fire after it was discovered that the company used a red dye for its Strawberries & Crème Frappuccinos that was made from crushed bugs. 

After its vegan, vegetarian and plain grossed-out customers went up in arms over eating bugs, the company decided to part ways with its red food dye and move towards a bug-free version. In a blog post Starbucks wrote, "After a thorough, yet fastidious, evaluation, I am pleased to report that we are reformulating the affected products to assure the highest quality possible."

1. Hershey Candy

The Milton Hershey Trust Co. took some heat in April 2012, after an HIV-positive child was denied admittance to a private school that the company oversees. 

According to PennLive.com, Philadelphia’s AIDS Law Project filed a federal civil lawsuit in November 2011 against the school, claiming it violated the student’s civil rights by refusing to allow the teen to attend the school.

Protests took place across Hershey, Pennsylvania, however both the company and the school stuck with their original decision saying it was made to safeguard the school's 1,850 students.

What other food controversies have you heard of?