A brewery is facing pushback from some Pacific islanders over the name of one of its beers.
Manhattan Project Beer Company, a Texas-based brewery, came under fire for naming one of its signature beverages “Bikini Atoll,” the Pacific Daily News reported. The beer is branded off of the location where the U.S. tested nuclear weapons from 1946 to 1958.
The company, founded in 2010, is known for its nuclear-themed drinks. Some of its other offerings include beers like Plutonium-239, Particles Collide, and Half Life. Bikini Atoll is a Gose-style beer described as “light and effervescent with high carbonation.”
Some residents of the Marshall Islands have taken offense at the offering, though. Bikini Atoll is a part of the island chain that remains uninhabitable due to the decades-old lingering radiation.
Republic of the Marshall Islands Secretary of Health & Human Services Jack Niedenthal wrote a letter to the company explaining the pain the testing has caused the islanders.
“The bottom line is, your product makes fun of a horrific situation here in the Marshall Islands – a situation, that I promise you is still ongoing – to make money for your company. This is unacceptable to us,” he said, going on to describe how his wife, children, and grandchildren are Bikini islanders. He also noted the high rates of cancer and suffering among islanders impacted by the tests.
“And now they have to read about how their beloved homeland, poisoned forever by the United States government, has a beer named after it,” Niedenthal added.
Manhattan Project Beer Company responded over Instagram and said it meant no offense to the people hurt by the testing.
“Our beer named Bikini Atoll was not created to mock or trivialize the nuclear testing that took place in the Marshall Islands,” the company said. “Through our brand and naming, we are creating awareness of the wider impacts and implications of the United State’s nuclear research programs and the pivotal moment in world history that is often forgotten.”
The company said they made the post because of “significant harassment and death threats,” noting it would take no further action and that the social media post is the only statement it would make on the matter.
