Unilever’s Pot Noodle ad banned for offensive language
Unilever’s piri piri Pot Noodle Facebook advert was branded “offensive” and banned by the ASA.
As part of the ruling, Unilever cannot use the adverts in its current form and was ordered not to use offensive images in future.
The advert showed a female model in a bikini next to a picture of a Pot Noodle with the text: “Phwarr, is it me or is it getting hot in here? Hot off. Which one gets you hotter?”
It also featured an image of a woman wearing red knickers and a revealing red bra and that she was “posed in a provocative way”.
The ASA said the ad was intended as a tongue-in-cheek play on the word ‘hottie’, but it upheld complaints against the advert.
“We considered the presentation of the woman in a sexual pose and the blatant comparison with the food product was crass and degrading and therefore likely to cause serious offence to some visitors to the Pot Noodle Facebook page,” it ruled.