UK Advertising Standards Authority Takes Action Against PETA Ad

The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint
against a print advertisement by the People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals (PETA) Foundation alleging that meat consumption raises heart
disease and cancer risk. According to ASA’s report, the poster under review
featured a child smoking a cigar and the following text: “You Wouldn’t Let Your
Child Smoke. Like smoking, eating meat increases the risk of heart disease
and cancer. Go vegan!”

After considering two complaints questioning whether the link between meat
consumption and disease risk could be substantiated, ASA concluded that
the studies provided by PETA to support its claims failed to show any strong
association between general meat consumption and increased risk of heart
disease and various cancers. “We considered that because the ad likened
the risks associated with eating any kind of meat to the risks of smoking,
consumers would understand from the ad that the connection between
eating any kind of meat and the risk of heart disease and cancer had been
proven beyond doubt, which was clearly not the case, and we therefore
concluded that the ad was misleading,” stated ASA.