Fast food chain McDonald's latest Happy Meal campaign of Pokémon in Japan caused chaos, forcing the company to halt it earlier than expected.

People are lining up for hours to get their hands on the limited edition Pikachu cards. But instead of eating the meal that comes with it, customers are dumping the food on tables, counters and outside the store.

“We do not believe in abandoning and discarding food. This situation goes against our longtime philosophy that we have cherished as a restaurant to ‘offer a fun dining experience for children and families.’ We sincerely accept that our preparations had not been adequate,” the company said in a statement.

McDonald's said it is working on ways to prevent such a situation from happening again, vowing to limit the number of meals each person can buy and ending online orders.

“We vow to return to the basics of what lies behind the Happy Set, which is about helping to bring smiles to families so we can contribute to the wholesome development of the hearts and bodies of children, who are our future,” the company added.