Producer:
Bearded Brewery
Complaint:
The logo features the strapline ‘Man go hard or man go home’. “Go hard or go home” is a well known modern idiom meaning to either give a task maximum effort or don’t bother at all. I think this is irresponsible as an alcohol slogan as it could very easily be taken by a consumer to champion drinking to excess, ie giving it ‘all or nothing’. On the website the strapline is written as ‘Mango hard or mango home’, which could possibly be referring to a strong mango flavour, but on the logo the words have been split and create this different, additional and potentially dangerous meaning. (Against rule 3.2(f) A drink, its packaging or promotion should not encourage illegal, irresponsible or immoderate consumption).
Complainant:
Member of the public
Decision:
Under Code paragraph 3.2(b)
A drink, its packaging and any promotional material or activity should not in any direct or indirect way suggest any association with bravado, or with violent, aggressive, dangerous, anti-social or illegal behaviour.
UPHELD
Under Code paragraph 3.2(f)
A drink, its packaging and any promotional material or activity should not in any direct or indirect way encourage illegal, irresponsible or immoderate consumption, such as drink-driving, binge-drinking or drunkenness.
UPHELD
The company’s submission:
The company acknowledged that complaints were dealt with on a case-by-case basis and that the Portman Group did not seek out cases to prosecute. However, the company stated that it believed the complaint was vexatious and that many worse examples of alcohol marketing existed. Nonetheless, in the spirit of cooperation, the company agreed to engage with the complaints process.
The company stated that the line ‘man go hard or man go home’ referred to the strong mango flavour of the cider and was selected after being submitted via social media by a fan of the brand. The company explained that compared to other mango ciders, Moustache Mango Cider was known for its distinct strong flavour profile which made it the company’s best-selling cider. The company acknowledged the phrase used as the tagline was an idiom but explained that the intention was to refer to the strong flavour of the cider and was not designed to encourage irresponsible alcohol consumption.
The Panel’s assessment:
3.2(b)
The Panel first discussed whether the packaging created any association with bravado, or with violent, aggressive, dangerous, anti-social or illegal behaviour as raised by the complainant. The Panel assessed the label and noted that it included imagery of a skull decorated with flowers above text which read ‘Moustache Mango’ and ‘Man go hard or man go home’. The Panel considered that the inclusion of a skull did not inherently create an association with violent or aggressive behaviour and that the skull was presented as decorative, comparable to a day of the dead theme. The Panel also discussed the name ‘Moustache Mango’ and agreed with the company that it clearly referred to the flavour of the drink and did not create any association with bravado, or with violent, aggressive, dangerous, anti-social or illegal behaviour.
The Panel then considered the phrase ‘man go hard or man go home’ in further detail. The Panel acknowledged the company’s explanation that the phrase was intended to emphasise the mango flavour of the drink. However, the Panel also noted that the line read as a play on words for the well-known idiom ‘go hard or go home’. The Panel considered the presentation of the line and noted that the word ‘mango’ had been separated to ‘man go’ which further compounded the link to the well-known phrase, ‘go hard or go home’. With that in mind, the Panel then discussed the meaning of ‘go hard or go home’. The Panel noted that ‘go hard or go home’ was generally understood to convey that if undertaking a challenge, a person should make a bold, superior effort or forgo the challenge all together. In the context of an alcoholic drink, the Panel considered that the line did present drinking as a challenge and on that basis, found that the line did create an association with bravado. Accordingly, the Panel found the packaging in breach of Code rule 3.2(b).
3.2(f)
In the context of its decision under Code rule 3.2(b), the Panel discussed the phrase
‘man go hard or man go home’ in relation to Code rule 3.2(f) to determine whether it also encouraged immoderate consumption. The Panel reiterated the phrase was presented as a play on words to create a connection to the idiom ‘go hard or go home’ and that to ‘go hard’ in the context of alcohol could read as encouragement for a person to drink an immoderate amount.
The Panel considered that ‘Man go’ read as an instruction and the rest of the line suggested that a person should ‘go hard’ and drink above and beyond what they would normally or ‘go home’. The Panel acknowledged that the producer had not intended for the phrase to encourage a style of consumption, which was evident from the rest of the packaging as it did not contain any other elements that encouraged immoderate consumption. Nonetheless, the Panel considered that the phrase ‘man go hard or man go home’ on an alcoholic drink encouraged immoderate consumption and was unacceptable in this context. Accordingly, the Panel upheld the complaint under Code rule 3.2(f)
Action by Company:
Working with Advisory Service to bring product in line with the Code.