diff --git a/merb-gen/app_generators/merb/templates/config/init.rb b/merb-gen/app_generators/merb/templates/config/init.rb
index 08a380e..04df808 100644
--- a/merb-gen/app_generators/merb/templates/config/init.rb
+++ b/merb-gen/app_generators/merb/templates/config/init.rb
@@ -5,6 +5,9 @@ Gem.path.unshift(Merb.root / "gems")
 # Make the app's "lib" directory a place where ruby files get "require"d from
 $LOAD_PATH.unshift(Merb.root / "lib")
 
+# Default strings to UTF-8
+$KCODE = 'UTF-8'
+
 <% require 'sha1' %>
 Merb::Config.use do |c|