THE fizz was taken out of a South African Breweries (SAB) marketing campaign for one of their alcoholic drink products, “Brutal Fruit”, that has been flighted as a TV advert, which the company was ordered to rehash or remove because the commercial promoted drinking on the beach.
This in spite of the SAB maintaining that they always advocated for the safe consumption of all their alcoholic beverages, and in this instance, they did not promote drinking in public spaces, including beaches.
The Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) upheld a complaint by a consumer against the Brutal Fruit advert in question, which they believed condoned and encouraged taking alcohol to the beach, which was illegal in South Africa.
In a recent ruling, the Directorate of the ARB asked that the SAB to withdraw or amend the advert.
In the advert which aired on DSTV Channel 121, the commercial features a bottle of Brutal Fruit on a colourful beach towel.
The rest of the commercial contains a series of scenes of friends enjoying Brutal Fruit.
The viewer, in their complaint to the ARB, said that drinking alcohol on the beach was against the law and mentioned that drunken individuals often drown on South African beaches, which advertising should not encourage.
The complainant further went on to add that glass bottles were broken on South African beaches and children and others could cut their feet on the glass fragments.
They further added that it was not necessary to drink alcohol to enjoy South African beaches.
In its response, the SAB said it was aware of the regulations surrounding the consumption of alcohol in public places and respects the regulations.
The SAB further said that the bottles were closed and at no point did anyone in the commercial consume the alcoholic beverage on the beach.
In regards to the drowning aspect, the SAB said they promoted responsible drinking.
They concluded that the campaign's core message was about celebrating moments responsibly and in a manner that aligned with the consumer's personal choice.
The SAB reiterated that they were dedicated to championing responsible consumption.
The ARB in its ruling said: "There is no doubt in the minds of the Directorate, having watched as a whole, that the commercial condones and in fact encourages bringing alcohol to the beach and consuming it there. This is illegal."
DAILY NEWS