Ad Banned in Israel to Air in the US and UK

A chick hatches into the world and joins a group of small, cute chicks walking on sawdust in an unnatural environment. Pleasant music plays in the background until the chick looks at a yellow puddle and jumps into it. A yellow rain falls from above, the factory begins to operate, and the music changes. The ending leaves no doubt: the product is a schnitzel.

This advertisement by the Vegan Friendly organization, produced with an investment of half a million shekels without the use of an advertising agency, will not be seen by Israelis. Unlike previous spots broadcast during major events, this one was disqualified by the Second Authority for Television and Radio.

"We aimed for a very big event this time too," says Vegan Friendly CEO Omri Paz. "We approached channels 12 and 13, and both disqualified it. When the World Cup arrived, we approached channel 11, but they said the clip was disqualified by the Authority. Cinema chains Cinema City and Planet initially agreed, but after seeing the ad, they refused to show it."

Keshet 12 cited the Second Authority's response: "The essence and purpose of the spot are to take a position and persuade the public on a controversial matter. Therefore, the advertisement contradicts section 11 of the Second Authority's rules, as it conveys a message on a subject that is controversial in the public."

The organization also attempted to work with Charlton's Sport 1 channel. Despite signing a 200,000-shekel contract for the World Cup, the channel canceled the agreement two weeks before the event, citing regulatory issues. Vegan Friendly is now preparing a one-million-shekel lawsuit for damages.

Campaign Abroad

Undeterred, the organization decided to launch the campaign internationally. "It is much cheaper to advertise in the USA and England than in Israel," notes Paz. "In the USA, we invested 50,000 dollars to reach over a million pairs of eyes, and in England, we invested 10,000 pounds."

From August 10 to September 13, the ad will be screened at NCM, the largest cinema chain in the USA. In England, a streaming campaign will run on platforms like Paramount and Discovery.

"The attitude towards veganism here is as if it is something on the margins of society," concludes Paz. "On the same channels that disqualified the ad, there is no problem putting ads that call to eat meat, which is defined by the World Health Organization as carcinogenic. Israel is the most vegan country today, but zero of this came from the state. Everything is from organizations."

The Second Authority stated that the advertiser had the right to modify the ad to comply with the rules but chose not to. Reshet 13 added that after the organization received a request for corrections, they "disappeared and did not respond."