Brewdog was slapped by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for an Instagram ad that appeared to promote an alcoholic drink as healthy.
A January paid advertisement for the UK company’s Clean & Press Hard Seltzer read: “Due to advertising regulations, we cannot claim this drink is healthy. He continued, “Even though Clean & Press is only 90 calories per can, with no carbs or sugar and a little alcohol, it’s not a healthy drink. If you’re looking for a healthy drink, don’t drink Clean & Press.
The clean and press is a weightlifting exercise that involves lifting a barbell off the floor or at waist level and then pushing it over your head.
Five people complained to the ASA, saying the ad implied the drink was healthy and used general health language that was not permitted for alcohol promotion.
The watchdog discovered that the wording on sugar and carbohydrates broke its rules, and that including the word “only” before the calorie count was also a prohibited health claim.
The ASA further found that the phrase “a little alcohol” implied that the drink was low in alcohol, despite having an ABV of 5%, which is equivalent to a strong lager.
In his decision, he said: “We considered that the claim ‘some alcohol’ was likely to be understood by consumers to mean that the product was low in alcohol.
“Low alcohol claims were allowed for alcoholic beverages under the code. However, the UK Food Information Regulations (2014) stated that the description ‘low in alcohol’ (and any other word or description implying that the drink was low in alcohol) should not be applied to a drink above 1.2% blood alcohol level.
Brewdog claimed her ad was meant to be “ironic,” but accepted that she broke the rules and would no longer post it.
The ASA said the ad was no longer to appear in its current form, adding, “We have told Brewdog not to make unauthorized health claims or nutrition claims regarding alcoholic beverages. We also told them not to make authorized nutrition claims for alcoholic beverages if the product did not meet the conditions of use associated with the claim.
A Brewdog spokesperson said: “We have accepted the ASA’s decision and have removed the language in question.”
Additional reporting by the Press Association
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Source: www.independent.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-07-07 09:53:09
