The UK's advertisement watchdog has ordered an end to Tesco's plant-based food adverts because they were 'misleading' the public on environmental claims.
The retailer launched TV, radio, press ad, tweet and website adverts during October and November 2021, all centred on its Plant Chef campaign.
The TV ad featured a woman about to eat a burger while watching TV. The programme she was watching said “the planet is continuing to warm” after which the voice-over said, “Now that’s not what Zoe likes to hear, but she’s gonna roll up her sleeves and do her bit […] and there it is, a delicious Tesco plant chef burger.
"We’ve lowered the price of dozens of our Plant Chef products because a little swap can make a difference to the planet.”
And the radio ad stated: “It may not sound like it, but Zoe here is doing her bit for the planet. By swapping to Tesco Plant Chef burgers every now and then, she’s making a difference, not by much, but every little, well you know, and we’re all for it.
"So we’ve lowered the price of dozens of our Plant Chef products. Good for your pocket, even better for the planet.”
The adverts received 171 complaints from the public, with some challenging whether Tesco's claims were misleading and could be substantiated.
Complaints specifically centred on the adverts' claims “a little swap can make a difference to the planet” and “even better for the planet”.
Complainants also questioned the claim “a little swap is […] even better for the planet.”
The ASA stated that it “expected to see evidence that that was the case based on the full life cycle of the Plant Chef burger in comparison with a meat burger.”,
The watchdog added that it “understood that Tesco did not hold any evidence in relation to the full lifecycle of any of the products in the Plant Chef range, or of the burger featured in the ads”.
“Claims regarding their positive benefits to the planet had not been substantiated and were likely to mislead," the ASA concluded.
"We told Tesco to ensure that in future they did not make environmental claims about their products unless they held sufficient evidence to substantiate the claims.
"We also told them to ensure that the basis of any environmental claims was made clear."
