A television advertisement for the Red Tractor food assurance scheme has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) following a complaint from the environmental group River Action. The ad, which featured the slogan "Farmed with care, that’s the Red Tractor way," and stated "from field to store all our standards are met," was challenged for exaggerating the scheme's benefits. River Action argued that some Red Tractor farms had not met environmental standards, leading to pollution of UK rivers.
Red Tractor contended that its standards primarily focus on farming, animal welfare, and food traceability, and that consumers would not interpret the "farmed with care" claim as relating to the environment. However, they acknowledged that some standards aim to minimize pollution risks. Between 2021 and May 2023, Red Tractor suspended or withdrew membership for hundreds of farms due to non-compliance with standards, including those related to pollution risks. While Red Tractor pointed out that a statistic about pollution incidents on their farms represented a small percentage of their total farms, the ASA found that the ad's imagery and claims created an impression of comprehensive care that consumers would expect to include environmental protection.
The ASA concluded that the evidence of compliance with basic environmental standards was insufficient to substantiate the broader claims made in the ad, deeming it likely to exaggerate the scheme's benefits. The watchdog instructed Red Tractor to be clearer about the specific standards being referred to in future advertising. River Act... download the app to read more
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