Subway is the latest brand to be vindicated by the ad watchdog in the latest slew of dismissed consumer complaints. Powdered egg? No. Misleading? No. Other complaints included breasts not being bouncy enough, and that granny's image has been tainted by Dirty Cider.
The Subway ruling followed one customer complaint that the firm had falsely advertised its new poached egg sandwich, describing it as a "powdered atrocity".
The television commercial was promoting the ingredients in the breakfast sandwich showing bacon, poached eggs and cheese being placed on to bread.
The complainant described the spot as "false advertising". "Upon us trying the new sub we were greeted by powdered atrocities, definitely no 'poached' eggs as the ad described," she said. "We believe this is misleading and disappointing and a poor representation of product".
Subway refuted the complaint that is used powdered eggs, arguing it used whole eggs in store, and that the ad made no health or nutritional claims.
The Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB) ruled that Subway was not guilty of false advertising and moved to dismiss the complaint. "It does not use powdered eggs in its breakfast Subs", it said. "The ad is presenting a depiction of the product which is not misleading or deceptive but is an accurate representation."
Next in the firing line was Pacific Brands-owned underwear brand Berlei, for its new sports bra anti-breast bounce commercial. The spot showed two young women bouncing on fitness balls, accompanied by a voice over describing the potential damage caused to breasts without a sportsbra during exercise.
The watchdog received two complaints, one claiming it was too sexual and another arguing the models were too thin.
The first complainant said the ad was "highly sexually suggestive" and it was not suitable for young viewers. "It makes me feel very uncomfortable and I am offended by the frankness of it," they said.
The other said the commercial would be damaging to females suffering from body image issues as the models didn't have "normal levels of healthy female fat", nor regular-sized breasts. They claimed the company should have used "real women whose breasts actually do bounce" and requested it be taken off air.
The watchdog ruled however that the women in the ad were fully clothed and that there was no "inappropriate exposure or sexual suggestion" in the commercial. It also claimed the models weren't "unrealistically thin" and said it didn't condone poor eating or dietary habits. It dismissed the case.
Another brand to have its case dismissed was alcohol company Fosters, with its out-of-home ad promoting its 'Dirty Granny' apple cider. The complainant said they were "offended' by the idea of "granny doing something dirty".
Other brands included Burger Urge, Man with a Van and Jamberoo Action Park.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEeY8FN5REQ
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