ITC Upholds Complaint Against Pot Noodle

The ITC has upheld complaints against a Pot Noodle television advert after a total of 310 people objected that it was offensive.

The tongue-in-cheek advert, which is the most complained about campaign of the year so far, depicted a man searching a red-light district for someone willing to sell him a Pot Noodle. The advert, which ends with the slogan “the slag of all snacks”, was previously barred from being shown before the 9pm watershed as a temporary precaution before the formal investigation.

Viewers complained the word slag and the sexual innuendo in the advert was offensive. Concerns were also raised that children could see the advert.

The agency behind the advert, Howell Henry Chaldecott Lury, argued the term slag was referring to a product and not a person and should therefore be acceptable. The ITC disagreed and felt the term was not suitable for transmission at any time. It concluded that adverts using the red-light district theme, without the term slag could only be shown after the 9pm watershed. The ASA has also received a number of complaints about poster versions of the advert.

ITC: 020 7306 7743 www.itc.org.uk

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