Heinz forced to can baked beans ad for 'encouraging dangerous behaviour'

The advert, called the ‘can song’, featured both children and adults drumming empty baked beans cans to the rhythm of a song. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said people could cut themselves on empty cans.

The advert featured text directing people to an online tutorial on how to prepare an empty can by washing and taping the edges ("just to be safe"). This was shared on social media with the hashtag #cansong.   

The ASA however received nine separate complaints that it would encourage unsafe practice and featured behaviour that would be dangerous for children to emulate.

After assessment, the ASA upheld a ruling against Heinz on the grounds that people would not be as proficient as the actors in the video at performing the routine.

It said: "Heinz explained that the cans used in the ad had been made safe to handle but that was not clear from the ad and we considered that the actions shown could therefore be dangerous... we concluded that it breached the Code."

You can read the full article HERE

Food Labelling Services comments:

The ASA is the self-regulatory organisation (SRO) of the advertising industry in the United Kingdom. Its role is to 'regulate the content of advertisements, sales promotions and direct marketing in the UK' by investigating 'complaints made about ads, sales promotions or direct marketing', and deciding whether such advertising complies with its advertising standards codes. These codes stipulate that 'before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove all claims, whether direct or implied, that are capable of objective substantiation' and that 'no marketing communication should mislead, or be likely to mislead, by inaccuracy, ambiguity, exaggeration, omission or otherwise.' In this instance, the advert was deemed to be dangerous to children.