WATCH: Vegan ad banned after fears it would upset parents who had lost a child

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned a controversial ad by the vegan charity Viva!, as it was “likely to be seen as insensitive”, especially “by those with experience of loss or trauma around parenthood”.

The charity’s ad – titled Scary Dairy – featured scenes of a baby being taken from its mother, equating the distressing process with the one experienced by dairy calves being separated from their own mothers.

In the 50-second spot, a woman looks lovingly at her newborn baby, before placing the infant in a cot. As she leaves the room, she turns back but the baby is gone.

When she turns on the light she is horrified to see a creepy man in a black suit standing over the cot. He smiles to reveal blacken teeth.

“You can’t keep your baby,” he tells the frightened mother.

“Because we want your milk.”

The regulator received 25 complaints concerning the ad, including one from The Dairy Council of Northern Ireland, challenging whether the ad was irresponsible or distressing, especially to those who had lost a child.

Detailing its reasons for banning the ad, a spokesperson for ASA said: [We] acknowledged that the ad was surreal and stylised in tone and did not feature graphic imagery. We understood that the approach was intended to encourage viewers to draw a direct emotional parallel between the separation of calves from their mothers and the imagined loss of a human baby.”

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The ruling continued: “We considered, however, that while viewers would understand that the ad aimed to raise awareness of animal welfare, the nature of that comparison was likely to be seen as insensitive by many and in particular by those with experience of loss or trauma around parenthood.”

Responding to the ASA, Viva! said: “The ad was based on factual information and was intended to inform and encourage ethical choices, not to shock.”

Citing a survey which found that 59% of respondents did not know that cows must give birth in order to produce milk, the charity added that it used “metaphor and cinematic techniques, rather than graphic imagery, to draw a symbolic comparison between human and animal separation”.

The ASA ruled that the ad must not appear again in the form complained about, and that Viva! must ensure that future ads are prepared responsibly and do not contain content that is likely to cause serious or widespread offence or unjustified distress to viewers.