The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a US nonprofit health advocacy organization, has announced that it has filed a complaint with the USDA Office of Inspector General over the now-infamous “wood milk” pro-dairy ads. In its complaint, PCRM said the ads violate laws prohibiting federal agricultural promotions from portraying competing products in a negative fashion.
“Promoting cow’s milk is one thing. It’s quite another to mock products that many non-white Americans choose for health reasons.”
In the widely shared “Wood Milk” campaign, actress Aubrey Plaza extols the benefits of milk made from tree wood, making an apparent mockery of plant-based milk. While some praised the ad’s bold humor, the campaign mostly sparked outrage among Plaza’s fans, who accused her of unfairly attacking dairy-free milk while spreading “propaganda” for the dairy industry.
According to the PCRM, the ad mocks plant-based products and violates statutory prohibitions against advertising that is “false or misleading or disparaging other agricultural products”. The ad campaign also “ignores prohibitions against unfair or deceptive acts or practices with respect to the quality, standard or use of any competing product,” the complaint said.
Milk labeling affected?
The group also believes the US dairy industry is illegally using advertising to influence government policy. The ad coincides with the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) proposed guidelines that would allow plant-based milks to use the word “milk” in their labeling. On February 23, 2023, the FDA issued its draft guidance and then invited the public to submit comments by April 24, 2023 before final guidance is established.
PCRM said the “Wood Milk” ad was launched before the close of the comment period, and on May 1, 2023, the comment period was extended to July 31, 2023. Since then the “Wood Milk” commercials have continued According to the group, this violation A federal law which states that USDA milk advertising dollars may not be used to influence legislation, government action or policy.
Request for new ads
In light of these findings, PCRM is requesting that the Office of Inspector General issue a recommendation to stop “wood milk” ads, and that government milk research and promotion programs (also known as “checkoff” programs) publish corrective ads that explain. Benefits of Plant-Based Milk
“‘Checkoff’ is a government program,” said FACC physician committee chair Neal Bernard, MD, associate professor of medicine at George Washington University School of Medicine. another thing.”