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One of the world's top retail giants Carrefour would never have imagined that one of its celebratory events would cause a furor among locals in Shanghai.

To mark the France-based hypermarket chain's 40th anniversary, its Quyang outlet has been distributing 500 free breakfast meals - soybean milk and steamed stuffed bun - every morning since last Monday.

But the free meal, valued at just more than one yuan (12 US cents), has led to long queues - extending to about 100 meters - of mostly old people outside the supermarket every day.

The meal has become so popular that some seniors have been queuing up as early as 5 am even though the store doesn't open until 8:30 am. Once open, all the 500 meals get over within 10 minutes, leaving many, some of whom have been waiting for hours, disappointed.

"I used to do exercise at 6 am daily. Because of the free breakfast, I changed my venue to near the store," said an old man surnamed Wang.

The long queues, the disappointments have triggered different opinions among locals, with the city's largest news portal ( ) launching a discussion panel.

Some Netizens think it is alms-giving by Carrefour while most are ashamed that people would actually wait several hours for a low-cost breakfast.

Still others consider it a marketing blitz.

"Carrefour has made use of low-income people for advertising," said an online surfer nicknamed Qian Fu. "If they really want to do something good, why not cut commodities' prices?"

A passer-by surnamed Zhang said: "These people don't lack money for breakfast. They are just being petty. It's a bit shameful, really."

Carrefour, on its part, said it was purely a commercial activity for its 40th anniversary. "We didn't want to cause any controversy and there is no other connotation to the activity," said Zhang Lixia, a public relations manager of Carrefour. "Despite the row, the free meals will continue as planned," giving no date as to when it will end.

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