Bear Ad - BAnned in NZ

[*Efjay*]

I don't know any details as such but apparently the Karicare Toddler milk ad with the Bear has been banned in NZ!

[Phteven]

woo hoo!!! I hate that bloody bear!!! Usually I'm not one to advocate hunting but it's always claymation bear hunting season in my house.

[hannanat]

Yep, me too. Lets hope they ban it here too.

[~shazz~]

i haven't seen it but i'm curious now why is it banned ? what does the bear do?

[bon]

Good I hope they ban it here too.

[*Efjay*]

Thats the one!

[bon]

I just saw it while watching Dr Phil. Grrr no ad irritates me as much as that one! Down with the Karicare bear!

[Naomi]

I hate that ad too!
Good on NZ, i hope we follow suit

[sushee]

shazz,

it shows a claymation bear saying she feeds her son Karicare toddler milk coz she doesn't want to give her baby milk from another species, as if to make out that the toddler milk wasn't made from cow's milk as well!

[Astrid]

Shannon - I remember being confused by that ad as well, it took a couple of times to work out it was different women.

[Rouge]

I hate it too! But you know what my MIL said...(chuckle worthy)

Thats a stupid add, bears don't drink cows milk...

I chuckled...

But on a serious note I agree wholeheartedly with the ban.

*hugs*
Cailin

[Trillian]

I have found this about it, but this is a condensed version, the transcript is really long, but I can pm/email you the link if you want to read the full version.

It comes from the Advertising Standards Complaints Board (which I am assuming is in NZ) on September 12, 2006;

The Complaints Board reviewed the correspondence before it and viewed the television advertisement. It noted the Complainants were of the view that the advertisement was misleading in respect of the following issues:

It implied that the Karicare Toddler Gold product:

* “was species specific for humans, when clearly it is cows’ milk based”,

* “as ‘natures next step’ when it was made of dried cows’ milk powder that had added ingredients”

and

* that “Advertising products of this nature also served to maintain the status quo that breastfeeding beyond 12 months is not a social norm, thereby “exploiting the lack of knowledge of the consumer”.

Turning to the advertisement, the Complaints Board... agreed that “nature’s next step” was not a suitable description of a product, which had to a certain degree, been manufactured, including supplemented with additives.

...the Complaints Board was of the view that the use of Karicare Toddler Gold was in fact an “optional” next step, the “natural” next step being a balanced diet including solids. Thereby, it was of the view that the wording “a natural next step” was an exaggerated claim which would also be likely to mislead the consumer.

The Complaints Board then considered the issue of the target audience for the product concerned. It noted that this would be mothers with young babies, many of whom could be young mothers, raising their first child. It said that providing nutrition for one’s child, particularly in the infant and toddler stages, was a serious and important matter. Accordingly, an advertisement promoting food choices for toddlers needed to be very clear, in order to avoid any confusion.

In the Complaints Board’s view, the advertisement did not make it clear to the consumer, that the product was a supplement milk, which was based on cows’ milk. In the Complaints Board’s view, the mother bear’s reference to the milk of “another species” also added confusion to the issue.

Having made the above observations, the Complaints Board was unanimously of the view that the advertisement was unclear to the extent that it was ambiguous as it omitted to clearly inform the viewer that the product advertised was based on cows’ milk, and thereby it was likely to mislead consumers. In addition, the use of the term “nature’s next step” was likely to mislead the consumer. For these reasons the advertisement was in breach of Principle 4 of the Code for the Advertising of Food.

However, the Complaints Board said the advertisement did not exploit the lack of knowledge of the consumer by informing the consumer about a product which could be used to follow on from breastfeeding after 12 months. There were regulations permitting the advertising of such products, and the advertisement did not discourage breast feeding.

The Complaints Board ruled to uphold the complaint.

[Trillian]

I like this bit form the full transcript, where Nutricia (the makers of Karicare) have their rebuttal summary;

Nutricia takes pride in being a responsible corporate citizen and it shares with the ASCB a strong interest in ensuring that consumers are properly informed. This is in line with Nutricia’s corporate goal to become the world leader in primarily dairy-based specialised nutrition, through extensive research, clinical studies and ongoing cooperation with healthcare professionals around the globe.

And I particularly like the "This is in line with Nutricia's corporate goal...", hmmm, somebody tell me again that this is a wholesome company who only wants the best for the worlds toddlers and aren't seeking to make as much money as they possibly can?

[Phteven]

The advertising standards bureau has an online complaints form. Maybe we should try and get the ad banned in Australia too. Its easy to find on google or I can PM the url to anyone who wants it....

[chelleg]

I only saw this add for the first time last night and was shocked! I had to let out a big WHAT THE??? When the add said something about giveing babies the formula instead of milk from another species... Last time i looked formula was based on cows milk or are cows suddenly from the same species as us? :eek:
For some unknown reason, my little brain box thought that the advertisement of formula products wasn't allowed...???

[Phteven]

They're not allowed to advertise infant formula but the regualtion doesn't apply to toddler formula. IMO advertising toddler formula probably has a knock on effect in that it raises brand awareness so its a sneaky way around the regulations.

[BellyBelly]

Why are we so far behind a country thats so closeby?!!! In so many ways.... Chloe can I please have the link? Feel free to post it.

[Phteven]

Here is the link for Advertising Standards Bureau. They can deal with issues in advertising that relate to health and safety so if you contact them you can emphasise that it claims non-existant health benefits that contradict those outlined by WHO. (Online complaints form here)
Here is the link for the ACCC. They can deal with misleading and deceptive advertising (ie the content of a product) so if you contact them you can focus on the way in which the ad implies that it's not dairy based and the fact that it misleads the consumer by suggesting that breastmilk is not nutritious enough but formula is. (online complaints form here)
I read an article about ads being banned a few months ago. A couple of things struck me. One was that some ads were banned after only about 5 complaints and the other was that ads that everyone hates (like the Cougar ad) only attracted about 20 complaints. It seems that part of the problem is that people don't bother to speak up.