Two pasta companies are sparring over gay rights after Barilla Chairman Guido Barilla told an Italian radio station on Wednesday that his company would never run an ad featuring a same-sex couple.
Bertolli Germany quickly responded with an ad that translates to "pasta and love for all," including pairs of the same types of pasta walking side-by-side down a spoon. The new ad, which was posted on Facebook, already has over 3,000 likes.
It's not the company's first pro-equality ad, either, according to AdWeek. Bertolli U.S. ran a commercial that featured a gay couple back in 2009.
The Barilla chairman's statement also caused an uproar among LGBT groups, with many calling for a boycott of the brand.
"If he doesn't want any same-sex couples in his ads, I don't want his pasta on my table," tweeted Michael Cashman, co-president of LGBT Intergroup, a European Parliament body that works to expand LGBT rights. At the end of the tweet, he added the hashtag, #boycottbarilla.
What's wrong with @Barilla's CEO? If he doesn't want any same-sex couples in his ads, I don't want his pasta on my table. #boycottbarilla!— Michael Cashman (@mcashmanMEP) September 26, 2013
Barilla later apologized, saying he wanted to highlight the importance of women in families.
Would you boycott Barilla over its chairman's statement? What do you think of Bertolli's ad response? Sound off in the comments, below.