Costa Coffee advert banned for encouraging people to eat its bacon rolls instead of avocados

Listeners complain promotion discouraged consumers from eating fresh fruit

Two listeners complained the promotion discouraged consumers from selecting fresh fruit

A Costa Coffee radio advert has been banned for advising people to eat its bacon rolls for breakfast instead of avocados.

Two listeners complained the promotion discouraged consumers from selecting fresh fruit.

The commercial, aired in June, featured a voice-over saying: "Oh, there's a great deal on ripen-at-home avocados. Sure, they'll be hard as rock for the first 18 days, three hours and 20 minutes, then they'll be ready to eat, for about 10 minutes, then they'll go off."

It encouraged people to head to the coffee chain for a bacon roll or egg muffin instead.

Costa said the advert played on the "unfortunate issue of ripening" avocados and was not suggesting listeners make a definitive choice over two breakfast items. It simply informed customers they had a promotional offer "to satisfy breakfast requirements", the company insisted.

Radiocentre, the industry body for commercial radio which clears ads for broadcast, said consumers would regard the comparison as a "light-hearted remark about the common experience of buying inedible avocados when compared to buying an instant hot coffee and bacon roll or egg muffin".

But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said consumers would interpret the ad as a comparison between the experience of eating an avocado and a bacon roll or egg muffin.

It said: "We considered that, although the ad was light-hearted, it nevertheless suggested avocados were a poor breakfast choice, and that a bacon roll or egg muffin would be a better alternative, and in doing so discouraged the selection of avocados."

The ASA ruled the advert must not be broadcast again, adding: "We told Costa to ensure future ads did not condone or encourage poor nutritional habits and that they did not disparage good dietary practice."

Additional reporting by PA