The UK’s Advertising Standards Agency has today (1 November) said that Danone can no longer air an advert for its probiotic yoghurt Actimel, which features a child licking a bus window.
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The voiceover in the advert stated: “Every morning, I like to give my kids Actimel to help support their bodies’ natural defences. There’s bad bacteria everywhere but kids will be kids… Actimel tops up their natural good bacteria, making life harder for the bad bacteria. Actimel. Help support their natural defences.”
Five viewers complained that the advert was misleading, a view that the ASA concurred with. The ASA found that the ad, created by Rainey Kelly Campbell RoalfeY&R, misleads consumers because it implied that Actimel would protect children from germs in general.
Danone UK said that the advert intended to show that Actimel had benefits for children as well as adults. The company said that the claims, “tops up their natural good bacteria making life harder for the bad bacteria” and “helps support their natural defences”, has been approved by independent medical experts, supported by peer reviewed and published clinical studies.
Danone argued that the ad did not imply the product would protect children from bad bacteria or prevent them from catching diseases.
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By GlobalDataThe Broadcast Advertising Clearance Centre also informed the ASA that their nutritional consultant had approved Danone’s evidence. The BACC said the words in the ad such as “helps support” and “making life harder for the bad bacteria” did not claim prevention from catching contagious bacterial diseases.
Nonetheless, the ASA upheld the complaint, despite Actimel’s proven probiotic effect. Delivering its decision, the agency said: “We considered that the images of the child licking the window and the bad bacteria bouncing off the good bacteria, coupled with the claims “Actimel tops up their natural good bacteria, making life harder for the bad bacteria” and “help support their natural defences”, implied that Actimel could help prevent children from catching bacterial infections.”
The advertising watchdog therefore concluded that the advert could mislead consumers.
