YOPLAIT LITE - Making light of those suffering from eating disorder?

LITE OR LIGHT?

After being aired, sometime later, this Yoplait Ad was pulled by the company after eating disorder awareness groups claimed that it had potential to trigger harmful thoughts and behaviour in people suffering from eating disorders. Said group consisted of the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA). 

Lynn Grefe, the President and CEO of NEDA, says that "the language in this advertising campaign was seriously problematic for those affected by eating disorders and anyone who may have a predisposition towards developing one."

The ad in question addressed a common dilemma: to dessert or not to dessert? In this Yoplait ad, an already slim woman is frozen in front of her office's refrigerator, an inner monologue belying a complex barter system that could justify a piece of raspberry cheesecake.

"[For those with eating disorders], opening a refrigerator is like walking off a bridge," said Lynn Grefe, president of NEDA. "And to see this behavior in a commercial tells people with eating disorders, see, it's even on TV. It's ok and normal for my head to go through all these mental exercises."

Apparently, when this ad was first aired, no one had noticed the problem until Lynn Grefe received several emails and phone calls regarding the ad from those suffering from eating disorders.

According to Jenni Schaefer, who was a victim of eating disorder since age 4, "I was shocked by how they really nailed it on the head--that's exactly what I thought every time I opened a refrigerator door. When you live with an eating disorder, you divide all foods into "good" and "bad" categories, like the yogurt versus the cheesecake [in the commercial]," Schaefer said. "Pretty soon everything moves into the bad category." 

For this ad, we have agreed that it is bad in terms of its cultural design that the producer of this ad was perhaps not sensitive enough to the fact that his/her advertisement would cause discomfort amongst those suffering from eating disorders. This ad was aired around 2011 and taken down. The following year, their sales decreased although meagre, a 1%, thus causing them to lose their No.1 position to competitor Chobani. 

Who was this ad for?
American Society - Core group consists of female audiences (age 18-49)

AIM OF THIS PRODUCT AD-

"Never again will taste buds be put on a diet! With such a wide variety of flavors, Yoplait® Light has made managing your weight absolutely delicious. With 20 flavors at 90 calories, Yoplait Light makes healthier eating SO good!" (as quoted from Yoplait website)

What is the cultural problem in this ad?
Insensitivity to Americans facing eating disorders. 

According to the National Association of Aneroxia Nervosa and Associated Disorders: Up to 24 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder (anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder) in the U.S.
For more info on this, visit : http://www.anad.org/get-information/about-eating-disorders/eating-disorders-statistics/http://www.anad.org/get-information/about-eating-disorders/eating-disorders-statistics/

Also, according to U.S.News - HEALTH section, "At least 10 million Americans are estimated to suffer from potentially life-threatening eating disorders, a family of behaviors characterized by an unhealthy relationship with food, an unhealthy relationship with one's body, and unhealthy weight-regulation practices. Combined, these illnesses are one of the leading killers of young women in western nations (Health.Us.News, 2010).
For more info on this, visit: http://health.usnews.com/health-conditions/mental-health/eating-disorders.




REFERENCES:

- Stampler,L, 2011. Yoplait pulls ad said to promote eating disorders. [online] Available at: <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/15/yoplait-pulls-ad-that-pos_n_877618.html>.
[Accessed 1 November 2013]. 

- Gray,E, 2011. Does this Yoplait commercial encourage eating disorders? [online] Available at: <http://www.thatsfit.com/2011/06/17/yoplait-ad-eating-disorders/>. [Accessed 1 November 2013]. 

- Deveaux-T, A, 2011. Yoplait removes an eating disorder triggering commercial. [online] Available at: <http://www.care2.com/causes/yoplait-ad-pulled.html> [Accessed 1 November 2013]. 

- Yoplait, 2013. Yoplait light yoghurt. [online] Available at: <http://www.yoplait.com/products/yoplait-light> [Accessed 14 November 2013].

- York.B,E, 2012. Greek yoghurt causes a stir with triple-digits gains. [online] Available at: <http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-03-16/business/ct-biz-greek-yogurt_1_greek-yogurt-chobani-tula-foods> [Accessed 1 November 2013]. 

VIDEO

- Reid, J, 2011. Banned ad for Yoplait - 2011. [video online] Available at: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxE1n1lb8KU> [Accessed 1 November 2013]. 


BY VANESSA VERA.
*This post is strictly unofficial. For educational purposes only and is based on student opinion and research. Not for any other uses.