The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld two complaints alleging that advertisements touting Kellogg Co.’s Special K® products as “full of goodness” and “nutritious” violated broadcast (BCAP) and non-broadcast (CAP) advertising codes for food, food supplements and associated health claims. The complaints targeted a TV ad for Special K® porridge that included supported health claim related to vitamin B2, as well as website claims regarding the product’s “unique Nutri K™ recipe.” According to ASA, the agency “shared Kellogg’s view that the claim ‘full of goodness’ was a reference to a general, non-specific health benefit of the product and as such, we agreed that Kellogg was required to accompany it with a specific authorized health claim.” But because the authorized vitamin B2 claim did not immediately follow the general health claim, ASA found the ad in breach of BCAP Code Rule 13.4.3. The watchdog also felt that the website advertisement…
Category Archives Advertising Standards Authority
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has dismissed a complaint alleging that Diageo Great Britain Ltd.’s holiday commercials for Baileys™ liqueur “implied that the success of a social occasion depended on the presence or consumption of alcohol.” Despite Alcohol Concern’s claim that the tagline “IT’S NOT CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOU… BAILEYS” was “irresponsible,” the agency agreed with Diageo Great Britain and Clearcast that consumers were likely to understand “Christmas” as a reference to the entire holiday season as opposed to a specific social occasion. “We considered that consumers would interpret the claim “IT’S NOT CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOU” as a play on words referring to getting together with friends over the festive period, as well as referring to the fact that the drink had been traditionally associated with the Christmas period,” ASA said. “We noted that the ad showed the women enjoying one drink together, and there was no suggestion that the…
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has released a trio of decisions upholding complaints against two distilleries and a bread company over allegedly misleading advertisements. Ruling against Summerhall Distillery Ltd. in a complaint filed by a rival company, ASA took issue with advertisements for “hand crafted” Pickering’s Gin that touted Summerhall as Edinburgh’s first gin distillery in more than 150 years, a claim the authority found could not be substantiated. “We considered that linking the product to the heritage of the spirit trade in Edinburgh and to imply that it was related to a revival of this industry was likely to be of particular interest to some consumers, and that its provenance in this context was therefore material information,” states ASA’s decision, which notes the presence of distillery operations within Edinburgh since 1863. “Because the claims had not been substantiated, we concluded that the ads were misleading.” In addition, ASA sided…
The Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP), a group that works in conjunction with the U.K. Advertising Standards Authority, has announced a pre-consultation with various stakeholders in advance of new rules targeting non-broadcast advertising of food and soft drinks high in fat, salt or sugar to children. Non-broadcast channels of advertising include online, outdoor, print media, cinema, and direct marketing. “Our decision to carry out a public consultation responds, in part, to changes in children’s media habits and evolving advertising techniques,” according to CAP. “It also reflects a growing consensus, shared by public health and industry bodies, about the role of advertising self-regulation in helping to bring about a change in the nature and balance of food advertising targeted to children.” CAP reportedly plans to launch the public consultation in early 2016. See CAP News Release, September 29, 2015. Issue 580
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against Internet advertisements for Drink Doctor Ltd.’s alcohol delivery service, ruling that two banners on the company’s Facebook page “drew a link between provision of alcohol and the provision of medical assistance.” In its ruling, the agency contends that even though consumers were unlikely to confuse Drink Doctor with genuine medical assistance, the use of medical imagery “presented alcohol as a product to be used in the same manner” as medicine. ASA also takes issue with the “boozebulance” vehicle and emergency phone number featured in the ads, as these reportedly implied that alcohol beverages were “necessary and indispensable.” “We also considered that the name ‘Drink Doctor’ in itself contained the same implication by conflating the role of a medical professional with the provision of alcohol,” concludes the ruling, which orders Drink Doctor to refrain from using medical imagery or terminology…
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint alleging that an online “instant-win” promotion organized by Kettle Foods Ltd. was misleading because it required participants to register before finding out if they had won a prize. According to ASA, the U.K. Code of Non-broadcast Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (CAP Code) states that “participants in instant-win promotions must get their winnings at once or must know immediately what they have won and how to claim without delay, cost or administrative barriers.” Kettle Foods reportedly advertised “instant win prizes” on its potato chip packages, which featured a unique code with instructions directing entrants to a website. Before viewing their potential winnings, consumers were asked to provide identifying information, including full name, postal code, telephone number, email address, date of birth, and a chosen password for subsequent visits. As required by law, the company also offered a “no purchase…
Diageo Great Britain Ltd. reportedly plans to appeal the U.K. Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA’s) decision to ban a Smirnoff ® advertisement for allegedly violating the marketing rules for social responsibility in alcohol marketing. Upholding its own complaint, which claimed that the ad in question linked social success to alcohol consumption, ASA found that “the ad’s presentation implied that before the visitor asked for an alcoholic drink, the bar was cold and uninviting and that once his drink had been ordered, the bar changed and became livelier and more fun.” Diageo disputed this interpretation, arguing that the TV spot showed the bar “tilting” to filter out the elements that gave it an unwelcoming atmosphere. According to the ruling’s summary of Diageo’s response, “The tilt acted as a physical division within the ad and where the pretentious items in the first scene were filtered out and the bar now had a warm…
The U.K. Advertising Standard Authority (ASA) has dismissed a complaint alleging that a message on Diageo Great Britain Ltd.’s Guinness® Twitter feed “implied that someone’s week would be improved by drinking alcohol.” Filed by Alcohol Concern, the complaint dubbed a tweet appearing on @GuinnessGB “irresponsible” for featuring a photograph of the iconic brewery’s gates with the caption, “a good week starts here.” Dismissing the challenge, ASA ultimately agreed with Diageo Great Britain that consumers would recognize the gates as belonging to St. James Brewery in Dublin and would not confuse the brewery with a bar or other social venue where alcohol was consumed. According to Diageo Great Britain, the followers of @GuinnessGB would also understand the tweet as part of a larger ad campaign highlighting individual workers at the brewery. “We also noted that the photo was tweeted on Monday,” states ASA. “In this context, we considered that the ad…
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld two complaints against a website advertising Brewmeister Ltd.’s “Snake Venom” beer as “THE WORLD’S STRONGEST BEER.” In response to the first complaint, which disputed the beer’s stated alcohol by volume (ABV),the agency questioned whether the independent analysis that determined Snake Venom’s ABV differed from the process used for standard beer. Noting that the beer’s fermented alcohol content was concentrated via freeze distillation and possibly augmented with ethyl alcohol, ASA found the advertisement misleading because “consumers would interpret the claim ‘Snake venom 67.5%’ to mean the product had an alcohol volume of 67.5%, as per the standard ABV measure, without having been through any other additional processes to standard beer.” ASA also upheld its own complaint challenging “whether the ad implied the drink may be preferred because of its alcohol or intoxicating effect, and whether the factual information about the strength of the…
The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld complaints against a TV commercial claiming that Kellogg’s “Special K Multi Grain Porridge” contained “30% less fat than other porridges.” According to ASA, which received complaints from PepsiCo Inc. and 14 other competitors, Kellogg Marketing and Sales Co. (UK) Ltd. argued that the advertisement’s reduced-fat comparative claim complied with the Annex to EC Regulation 1924/2006 on Nutrition and Health Claims Made on Food. To this end, Kellogg provided ASA and Clearcast with the data and methods used to conduct product comparisons under this regulation. The company reportedly explained that all varieties of Special K porridges contained 5.5 percent fat or less, whereas the top 75 percent of porridge products on the market contained an average fat content of 7.84 percent. “Kellogg also pointed out than none of the products included in the comparison had a fat content of 5.5% or less,” noted…
