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'Nutella riots' in France after 70% price cut

'Nutella Riots' - Level 0

People in France were fighting to buy Nutella. Supermarkets cut the price of it by 70 per cent, from €4.50 to €1.41. There were many shoppers outside stores. Inside stores, people got angry. A shopper told a newspaper that: "They fought like animals. A woman had her hair pulled…and another woman had a bloody hand. It was terrible."

An Italian company makes Nutella. It knew nothing about the price cut. The supermarket decided to cut prices. The company was sad. It said the price cut confused and upset people. The supermarket did not comment. A worker said: "It was crazy….It was like a riot." A tweeter said: "French people eat Nutella by the spoonful".

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'Nutella Riots' - Level 1

Shoppers in France have been fighting to buy the hazelnut spread Nutella. A chain of supermarkets cut the price of it by 70 per cent on Thursday. The cost went from €4.50 to €1.41. There were long lines of shoppers outside stores. Inside, shoppers got angry in the aisles. A witness described the chaos to French newspapers: He said: "They fought like animals. A woman had her hair pulled…and another woman had a bloody hand. It was terrible."

An Italian company called Ferrero makes Nutella. It had nothing to do with the discount. Only the supermarket decided to cut prices. Ferrero was sad at what happened. It said the discount, "created confusion and disappointment among customers". The supermarket did not comment, but a worker said: "It was crazy…like it was the first day of sales….It was like a riot." A tweeter said Nutella is very important and that, "French people eat it by the spoonful".

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'Nutella Riots' - Level 2

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Shoppers in France have been fighting each other to buy the hazelnut spread Nutella. A nationwide chain of supermarkets cut the price of it by 70 per cent. The supermarket started a promotion on the jars on Thursday. The cost was cut from €4.50 to €1.41. There were long queues outside stores. Inside, shoppers lost their cool in the aisles. A witness described the chaos. She told French newspapers: "They fought like animals. A woman had her hair pulled, an elderly lady had a cardboard box put on her head, and another woman had a bloody hand. It was terrible."

An Italian company called Ferrero makes Nutella. It said it had nothing to do with the discount. It tweeted that only the supermarket decided to cut prices. It criticized what happened, saying the discount, "created confusion and disappointment among customers". The supermarket did not comment. However, an employee said: "It was crazy…like it was the first day of sales. People just rushed in, shoving everyone and breaking things….It was like a riot." A tweeter said Nutella is very important in France. She said: "French people eat it by the spoonful."

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'Nutella Riots' - Level 3

There have been crazy scenes in supermarkets across France. Shoppers have been fighting and punching each other to buy jars of the hazelnut spread Nutella. A nationwide chain of supermarkets cut the price of it by 70 per cent. The supermarket Intermarché launched a promotion on 950-gram jars of the sweet treat on January 25. The cost was slashed from €4.50 to €1.41. Long queues formed outside stores, but shoppers lost their cool in the aisles. A witness at one store described the chaos. She told French media: "They fought like animals. A woman had her hair pulled, an elderly lady had a cardboard box put on her head, and another woman had a bloody hand. It was terrible."

The maker of Nutella is an Italian company called Ferrero. It said it had nothing to do with the discount. It tweeted: "The decision for the promotion was taken [only] by Intermarché." It added: "We condemn the consequences of this operation, which created confusion and disappointment among customers." The supermarket has not commented on this story. An employee said: "It was crazy. It seemed like it was the first day of sales. People just rushed in, shoving everyone and breaking things." He added: "It was like a riot. We nearly called the police." A tweeter explained how important Nutella is in France. She said: "French people eat it by the spoonful. I had it on toast for breakfast as a child."

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