Dettol China ad apologizes for touching on chastity concept

Dettol China advertisement apologizes for mentioning virginity. Observers say it’s a complete mess

Author, Kelly Ng

Published June 23, 2026 10:17 am

Reading time: 2 minutes

British hygiene brand Dettol has apologized for an advert in China. The company said the ad, which was intended to criticize sexism, backfired.

The five-minute long advertisement for a multi-purpose disinfectant product, filmed in the form of a mini-drama, initially depicts a man looking for a partner who is "clean and not contaminated by other men."

Later in the ad, there's a plot twist: the man's new girlfriend publicly accuses him of his misogynistic comments and breaks up with him. Dettol was then presented as the solution to the fight against "toxic men just like this germ".

The ad caused an uproar on the Chinese Internet, with some users saying it objectified women and others calling for a boycott of the brand.

Dettol said the ad, which has been pulled following the controversy, was originally intended to criticize gender stereotypes, but that clips later circulated online distorted its core message.

Dettol said in a statement issued on Monday (June 22): "It has offended many people, especially female friends. There are deficiencies in content expression and review failure, and the responsibility cannot be shied away from."

The company also said it would review its content moderation process.

Dettol said its purpose was to "protect family health," adding: "But we also know that true protection also lies in safeguarding everyone's dignity and their right to equal treatment."

The ad has sparked heated discussions on multiple social media platforms in China over the past few days, with many angry at its attempt to compare personal "purity" to the disinfecting power of Dettol products.

"What kind of junk advertising is this? I have nothing to say," wrote one user on China's Weibo.

Another comment said: "This company is really hopeless. What are the senior management doing? I won't use Dettol anymore. There are so many brands on the market."

Manya Koetse, head of electronic communications at Eye on Digital China, described the campaign as "a complete mess for a brand whose core business is cleaning."

"Even though the original intention was to show that there was something wrong with the male character, the message was so poorly delivered that it had a serious backlash," she said.