The Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland (ASAI) has ruled that an advertising campaign by the National Dairy Council (NDC) should not reappear in its current form, after the ASAI received complaints.

Print, TV and radio adverts in the series claimed that “Ireland has a lower carbon footprint per litre of milk than almost any other country”, “one of the lowest dairy carbon footprints in the world”; and “litre for litre, Irish milk has a footprint half the size of milk produced in most other countries”.

Complainants said these were misleading.

The ASAI, having assessed the NDC’s responses to the complaints, ruled that the use of a carbon footprint study from 2010, without evidence of the average global figure not having changed, was not sufficient evidence for the claims made in the advertising.

The NDC accepts the guidance and recommendations of the ASAI and has removed references referred to by their Complaints Board following the consultation process.