Taking on the dairy industry

The challenge
Animal Aid has been at the forefront of animal welfare campaigning for many years, and was looking to confront a broader audience with the horrific reality of the dairy industry. Dairy cows endure terrible conditions and daily suffering to produce milk and cheese for our tables. Our challenge was to reveal these horrible truths with a compelling campaign that walked the line between engaging and educating the public, without immediately causing them to turn away.

Our approach
As we looked at the Animal Aid images and videos, our initial reaction was that we were looking at a horror film… inspiring an aesthetic that would be the ideal way to deliver hard-hitting messages. ‘The Terror on our Tables’ shows what it’s like to be a dairy cow, and asks whether their suffering is worth it for a glass of milk. Its wide-ranging messages hit across multiple channels, ranging from print and digital OOH, to social, a campaign microsite and a hard-hitting TV spot shown during primetime and on cinema screens.

Bringing it to life
The TV ad is a first for the UK: never before has the dairy industry been tackled head-on in such an uncompromising and powerful way. The 30-second slot feels like a found-footage horror film, with Diane Morgan providing a chilling voiceover. Quickly reaching more than 20-million views, the ad moved onto cinema screens in early March, helping to further amplify Animal Aid’s biggest campaign ever.

By signing the pledge and taking a step towards veganism, the public can make a stand against the cruel dairy farming they’ve just witnessed. It gives them a way to address the problem for themselves, to truly choose compassion.

