Innocent TV ad banned for claiming its drinks help environment
The drinks company Innocent has had an advert banned by the Advertising Standards Authority after environmentalists reported it for claiming that drinking its smoothies is good for the environment.
In the television ad, a man and his otter companion find that their boat is hijacked by revellers celebrating chaotically as they approach a large waterfall. They sing about “messing up the planet” until they find themselves in peril, hanging off the edge of a cliff. They then row back to safety, clear up the rubbish, and start turning apples on a tree into Innocent smoothies, which they all drink as they “fix up the planet”.
The brand, which is known for its “wackaging” and is majority owned by Coca-Cola, has been making an effort to improve its climate credentials among consumers.
Complainants, including the activist group Plastics Rebellion, argued that the ad implied that drinking smoothies from a disposable plastic bottle was good for the environment.
In response, Innocent said it was a B Corp, which was a certification granted by the organisation B Lab to companies that demonstrated a high social and environmental performance. Innocent said it had committed to being carbon neutral by 2030, and had opened a carbon-neutral factory that ran on renewable energy and a cleaning system that reduced water usage by 75%.
It also said it was not trying to show that smoothies are good for the environment, and was instead making a call to action to its customers not to harm the planet.
The ASA ruled in favour of the complainants. It found that Innocent’s advert drew a strong association between the drinks and a positive impact on the environment.
The ruling states that “many consumers would interpret the overall presentation of the ad to
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