Nivea apologises as branded poppy flayed

Nivea's Anzac Day post was criticised by Facebook users. Photo / Supplied

An Anzac Day poppy posted on social media has been criticised by the RSA after it was branded with a skincare company's logo.

Nivea New Zealand posted an image of the country's flag behind a poppy on its Facebook page yesterday, but instead of the iconic black RSA-stamped centre, the flower bore the company's blue logo.

RSA national executive committee vice-president David Maloney said it was "dreadful" and also breached intellectual property rights.

It was the first time he had heard of a company branding the poppy with its own logo.

"It's our poppy. Occasionally people, my understanding is, that they want to use it but in most times we turn them down."

Mr Maloney said he agreedwith up to 30 comments on thephoto that the image was in"bad taste" and "disrespectful".

Lisa Matijevich called the idea "disgusting" and Graham Johns asked: "Can you forget about marketing promoting advertising for just one day a year?"

"The poppy is a symbol of remembrance for those who died in war, not for a cosmetics and skincare company. This is an inappropriate use of this symbol," said an anonymous user.

Soon after the Herald contacted Nivea's parent company, Beiersdorf NZ, the post was removed and an apology issued on Facebook.

"Dear Nivea fans, we're really sorry if our post on Anzac Day offended anyone. We've heard you and have since removed this post from our page. It was meant to represent our support and Nivea's remembrance of the courageous soldiers who died fighting for our country. Thank you everyone for the feedback."

A spokesperson did not return calls last night.