A CONTROVERSIAL advertising campaign for Hunky Dorys crisps has been withdrawn after attracting over 300 complaints and a threat of legal action.

The campaign by Largo Foods featured women in revealing tops playing rugby under straplines such as “Are you staring at my crisps?”and “Tackle these”.

The Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland (ASAI) said yesterday the company had accepted its request to pull the campaign because of the widespread criticism. The process of removing posters and billboards had begun but would take several days to complete.

The Irish Rugby Football Union said last night it had reached an amicable agreement with Largo under which the company undertook to remove all references to rugby on the advertising.

The campaign, which cost €500,000, has been branded sexist, while the IRFU described the adverts as “in poor taste” and threatened legal action over a reference in the advertisement to the crisps as a “proud sponsor of Irish rugby”.

ASAI chief executive Frank Goodman said a decision on the complaints it had received would be published later this month. Under a fast-track mechanism, which is triggered when complaints are deemed to be sufficiently grave, the authority had decided to ask Largo to remove the ads in advance of a formal decision on the complaints.

A complaint was made by the Rape Crisis Network Ireland, which claimed the posters were sending out messages that may condone or have the effect of encouraging unsafe actions.

“These posters add to attitudes and behaviours that make Ireland a place where the casual and everyday sexual assault of women is permitted and unchallenged,” its director Fiona Neary said.

The National Women’s Council described as depressing the advertisement and the fact that the company would get “masses of publicity” from the controversy.

Largo Foods could not be reached for comment last night, but previously chief executive Raymond Coyle rejected the allegations of sexism and claimed the company just wanted to inject “a little bit of fun into things”.

Largo also said the reference to Irish rugby related to its sponsorship of the Navan rugby team.



