A cute ad for Dairylea Cheese has been banned by UK advertising authorities after it featured two young girls dangling upside down from a goalpost while eating a cheese triangle.
Fourteen people complained about the 40-second spot, including one viewer who said a toddler in their family had copied the girls.
Dairylea is owned by Mondelez and the ad was the work of its creative agency VCCP.
Mondelez argued the risk of choking was low when upside down and even pointed research that it said suggested someone’s ability to swallow was not affected by the position they ate in – and, in fact, being in a head-down position was actually recommended during a choking incident.
It added that the spot also featured parents in the background supervising. Mondelez also said the ad had not aired during kids’ prime viewing time and was in fact aimed at grocery buying parents.
Watch the offending spot below:
However, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) agreed to ban the ad as the children were in a dangerous position, eating upside down is a choking hazard and kids were likely to imitate what they saw in the advert.
In handing down the ban, ASA said: “We considered that the ad condoned and encouraged younger children to eat whilst hanging upside down, which was an unsafe practice where there was potentially a high risk of choking.”
Mondelez agreed to remove the ad, a spokesperson for the company commenting: “We recognise and will abide by the ASA’s decision but we are disappointed by the ruling. It was aimed at adults (parents) rather than young children and was deliberately scheduled away from programming likely to appeal to children under 16. As such, we believe it was unlikely to encourage ‘copycat’ behaviour by young children.
“We remain committed to responsible advertising and work with a range of partners to make sure our marketing meets and complies with all relevant UK regulations.”
