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Oatly doesn’t mind getting the cold shoulder from Big Dairy. In fact, the brand provoked a frosty response—then relished in it—by crashing an ice cream social sponsored by the International Dairy Foods Association recently in Washington, D.C.
Capturing sound bites and awkward interactions with attendees, an Oatly video crew tried to convince Capitol Hill denizens to leave the outdoor party and sample the brand’s “propaganda-free soft serve” at a nearby food truck labeled a “dairy deprogramming zone.”
Event organizers were less than pleased. The police showed up, providing a splash of light drama for Oatly’s spot. (No arrests were reported, although some Oatly signage had to be relocated.)
“Tension like this is worth it to us,” Michael Lee, executive vice president and executive creative director of Oatly North America, told ADWEEK. “As our planet continues to warm, it’s imperative that we take actions to do better by it, and that’s why we decided to push the needle a bit further here.”
The resulting documentary-style video aims to call attention to the environmental impact of animal-based products like cow’s milk and the influence of Big Dairy on the country’s lawmakers.
It is yet another chapter in the ongoing bitter battle between dairy and various plant-based food marketers, which has featured celebrity appearances from Aubrey Plaza and Queen Latifah, public callouts on sustainability and semantic tangles over what should be considered “real” milk.
Poking the bear
Perennially cheeky Oatly has been outspoken on environmental issues in the past, buying print ads and billboards about one year ago in New York and Los Angeles challenging dairy marketers to disclose their carbon footprint.
The brand offered free ad space for those who would agree (there were no takers). Oatly—which says its original oat milk has a 49% lower climate impact than cow’s milk—now shares a full list of its products’ climate footprint on its website and via some packaging.
