The nation was divided over the price of one of Korea¡¯s fast food favorites - fried chicken.

Lotte Mart, a giant discount chain run by Korean conglomerate Lotte Group, began selling a fried chicken set meal called ¡°Tong Keun (literally meaning ¡°big bucket¡± Chicken¡± priced at W5,000 in its 82 stores across the nation in early December.

Since most chicken restaurants and delivery shops usually sell fried or baked chicken meals at between W10,000 and W18,000 (US$1=W1,158), the price of Lotte Mart¡¯s fried chicken was about half the market price.

Local franchises and small restaurant owners immediately protested against Lotte¡¯s launch into the fried chicken market, claiming that it was a serious threat to their business.

Some government officials also joined the rally, denouncing Lotte as immoral for selling a product that undercuts the market price and stealing customers from small businesses around the country.

Others said sales of Lotte Mart fried chicken should be stopped because it went against fair competition, hindering balance between small and big businesses.

Some people also criticized Lotte Mart for using cheap chicken as a ¡°bait¡± to attract more customers to their discount store chains at the expense of other stores¡¯ profits.

On the other hand, many consumers were happy to save money. They believed that well-known chicken franchises had been ripping off customers, taking too much profit and hope that this can bring sound competition into the market under the principle that a free market can benefit consumers.
The Fair Trade Commission also supported Lotte¡¯s position, as there is no evidence to show that Lotte¡¯s fried chicken price was below the market price as a chicken costs about $3 and few ingredients are needed for fried chicken and other chicken dishes.

It also pointed out that Lotte limited the number of daily chicken sales to 300 per store and therefore, it was wrong to assume that the firm put other chicken franchises out of business and monopolized the market.

Amid the growing controversy, Lotte Mart decided to stop selling its ultra-cheap fried chicken less than a week after launching the product.

¡±Following criticism that our fried chicken is impeding fair competition with small stores, we have decided to stop sales of the fried chicken,¡± said Roh Byung-yong, the CEO of Lotte Mart.

Although Lotte Mart¡¯s venture ended quickly, controversy over protecting consumer rights and balancing the position of small businesses in a capitalist market remains.