
The German Ministry of Defense collaborated with döner restaurants to place recruitment advertisements with QR codes on packaging in order to close the personnel deficit.
AI-generated summary
As of the end of July, the Bundeswehr has 186,705 active personnel and aims to increase this number to over 260,000 by 2035.
Germany has launched a striking recruitment campaign to address staff shortages in the military. Through QR codes placed on döner kebab packaging, customers are directed straight to career opportunities in the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr).
According to a report by Politico, the German Ministry of Defense has partnered with döner restaurants in order to recruit new personnel for the Bundeswehr, specifically to serve in medical services.
As part of the campaign, military recruitment messages and QR codes are placed on döner wrappers. Customers who scan the code with their phones can access information about duties and career opportunities in the Bundeswehr.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense told the Berliner Kurier that the campaign does not only target young people at the beginning of their careers. The ministry also aims to attract employees looking to change careers and skilled workers searching for a new profession into the army.
The campaign, which the ministry calls "ambient advertising," aims to bring military recruitment messages into people's daily lives.
The döner restaurants participating in the campaign are not paid anything. The businesses voluntarily use the packaging featuring military recruitment messages and obtain these packages free of charge.
The Ministry of Defense stated, "The restaurants receive the branded packaging for free."
The campaign, carried out via döner packaging, stands out as part of Germany's plans to expand its military.
As of the end of July, the Bundeswehr had 186,705 active personnel. This figure indicates that the German army has reached its highest personnel level in the last 13 years.
Meanwhile, the Berlin administration plans to increase the number of active soldiers to over 260,000 by 2035 in order to meet NATO's capacity targets.
In line with this goal, Germany is trying to attract not only young people, but also experienced workers and individuals looking for a career change into the armed forces.
Germany's campaign is just one of the unusual efforts being carried out in Europe to increase the personnel numbers of militaries.
In 2019, the British Army ran an advertising campaign targeting youth with phrases such as "snowflakes," "selfie addicts," and "phone zombies."
While France launched a comprehensive nationwide military recruitment campaign in 2024, the Netherlands has been offering young people the opportunity to spend a paid year in uniform since 2023.

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