The UK’s advertising standards watchdog has banned a Unilever Flora ad for making unjustified claims about its Pro-Activ spread.
The Advertising Standards Authority said it received two complaints about two adverts, which feature two women who lowered their cholesterol levels with Flora Pro-Activ.
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The two ads used a woman either walking or swimming who then show a series of cards revealing that their cholesterol is going down. A voice-over states the women had started using Flora pro-activ when told they had high cholesterol and it was now “considerably lower”.
The advert goes on to claim that plant sterols found in Flora pro-active are clinically proven to significantly lower cholesterol, with both a voice-over and on-screen text stating that “No other food lowers cholesterol more”.
The ASA ruled that the statement “no other food lowers cholesterol more” was a specific heath claim and as it was not an authorised on the European Union register, its inclusion was a breach of the Broadcasting Code.
Unilever argued that there are “no other foods or food ingredients on the market with significant, scientifically proven cholesterol-lowering effects”, therefore it believed the claim was substantiated.
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By GlobalDataThe food group stated that it was “well known” and “widely publicised” that high cholesterol was a risk factor in the development of coronary heart disease. Unilever’s target audience, it said, was a particular group of consumers who were interested in cholesterol and health.
Unilever noted that the full authorised claim included the wording “High cholesterol is a risk factor in the development of coronary heart disease”, but considered this was “superfluous” based on the average consumer’s understanding.
Despite Unilever having submitted scientific studies that looked at the cholesterol-lowering properties of Flora Pro-Activ’s active ingredient plant sterols, the ASA banned the ads and said they must not be broadcast again.
The ASA’s decision will be a blow for Unilever, which has seen sales of its spreads brands slow.
Flora sales in particular were hit when the group reformulated its recipe earlier this year, only to be forced to back pedal after a consumer backlash.
The company has been on a drive to improve the fortunes of the Flora spreads business, with plans for a rebrand revealed last month.
