The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) banned a Tesco advert for a vegan "Plant Chef" burger over showcasing "misleading" claims, stated recent reports.
According to recent reports, ASA condemned Tesco for implying that if customers purchased the Plant Chef burgers they would "positively affect the environment" and "do their bit" to combat climate change by swapping to vegan burgers.
171 complaints have been received by the ASA since the adverts released across broadcast and print last autumn.
"We 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,” reports quoted a statement by ASA.
"However, we 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,” ASA concluded.
On the other hand, Tesco said the claims were not, nor meant to be, "environmental claims", as they did not assert that the products were wholly sustainable or good for the planet.
A spokesman for Tesco said the supermarket was "disappointed by the outcome".
“We’re committed to making it easy and affordable for customers to incorporate plant-based meat alternatives into their diets and recipes,” he added.
