Interest
Croatian Food Maker Addresses 'Vegeta' Product Name
posted on by Gia Manry
The Croatian Times, a news source based in Central Europe, reports on the food manufacturer Podravka and its condiment "Vegeta," which bears the same name as a character in Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball manga. The company has no intention of starting a legal battle over the name, but a representative stated that it is not "pleasant" to see the "violent images" of the anime character in Internet search results, rather than the food product itself.
Podravka invented the product, a spice mix, in 1958 — 31 years prior to the Toriyama character's first appearance. Vegeta first appeared in chapter 204 of Dragon Ball manga in Japan in 1989. In North America, the manga volumes that Toei adapted into the Dragon Ball Z television anime were re-titled Dragon Ball Z to match the anime; Vegeta's first appearance takes place in chapter 10 of this version.
