A number of stalls at this year’s Manchester Christmas Markets have faced criticism for their use of AI-generated images when advertising their bratwurst, cakes and cookies, with some shoppers calling for a boycott of stalls using ‘AI slop’ posters
Several stalls at this year’s Manchester Christmas Markets have come under fire for using AI-generated imagery to advertise their bratwurst, cakes and cookies. The Manchester Christmas Markets officially opened their doors on Friday, with more than 200 stalls spread across ten locations, including Market Street, St Ann’s Square and New Cathedral Street.
This year’s markets, which will mostly run until December 22, will see the return of the beloved giant ‘Zippy’ Santa outside Albert Square, alongside the big wheel and a helter skelter. A brand new designated food and drink destination at Lincoln Square has also been added to the mix.
Over the weekend, Manchester Evening News lifestyle reporter Dianne Bourne took to X to reveal the price of bratwurst sausages at one of the stalls on its opening day.
She wrote: “Sausage prices remain stable this year – you’re looking at paying £8 for a German Bratwurst at the Manchester Christmas Markets.”, reports the Manchester Evening News.
The post was accompanied by a photograph revealing a series of AI-generated promotional posters for currywurst and hot dog sausages at one particular stall. The images sparked a backlash, with one social media user asking: “Can we all agree to boycott places with those awful AI posters?” Another fumed: “£8 and they can’t use a bit of it to pay a graphic designer.”
While a further disgruntled punter declared: “I don’t care how much they cost… if I get a single sniff of AI slop from these posters, I wouldn’t spend a penny on them.”
One more angry visitor chimed in: “FOOD VENDORS PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS DELICIOUS TAKE ACTUAL PICTURES OF YOUR FOOD.”
Another simply wrote: “I genuinely wonder what % of Christmas market stalls will use AI slop this year, surely north of 80%.”
The MEN contacted the Bratwurst King stall, which operates four locations at this year’s markets, to quiz them on their use of AI-generated imagery. A member of staff, who introduced himself as one of the owners, explained: “In Germany, AI is everywhere and people do not seem to mind about it as much, but the people in the UK have had a bigger reaction.
“It is the first year we have used it like this, but we have tried to make sure everything looks right. We have already taken some images down because they did not look the same. We understand that some people do not like it, and we have had a few people come up to us and tell us that we shouldn’t be using AI.
“At this point, we have already paid for the posters and we cannot replace them this year, but we are already planning to go back to photos next year. That is the plan.”
Videos circulating on social media have showcased some of this year’s market stalls, with certain clips racking up over 100,000 views apiece. In one TikTok video, content creator @hopefullygiggingsoon likened the use of AI to an ‘epidemic’, claiming things were reaching ‘new levels of AI sloppification’.
One stall, featured across several videos and operating at both Albert Square and St Ann’s Square, has stood by its use of AI. “There are a lot of stalls and even shops and restaurants doing it now, it’s not just us,” explained a woman who identified herself as the owner of one of the stalls, which she requested remain unnamed.
“I think they are realistic to what we sell, we are not misleading people.”
When pressed on whether she could understand the backlash, the woman revealed she had neither seen the videos nor the social media posts, and had not received any complaints from customers directly. “I can see why some people might have a concern about AI in general, but nobody has said anything directly to us,” she added.
“We are a local business, and I do think that people and the press like to be very negative about the Christmas Markets when they could be more supportive. We got the posters printed locally, so we are still paying for them. It’s not like it is free.”
Manchester Council, who are responsible for organising the markets, were also approached by the Manchester Evening News regarding the use of AI at certain stalls, but declined to comment, stating that it was a matter for the individual traders themselves to address.
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