We Eat Balanced campaign to champion 'British' meat and dairy

The term ‘British’ will be included in our We Eat Balanced marketing campaign for the first time this autumn, thanks to new UK rules.

We Eat Balanced is back on 8 September to reinforce the importance of British meat and dairy in helping to form part of a healthy and sustainable diet.

We had previously been restricted from using 'British' as the primary message because of EU State Aid rules. However, earlier this year, guidance on the new UK rules was published, as part of The Subsidy Control Act, opening the way for this change. 

Running until 22 October, the campaign aims to promote consumer awareness and long-term positive attitudes towards naturally produced British red meat and dairy.

It also forms part of our work in promoting and defending the reputation of red meat and dairy, as well as challenging misinformation.

Future use of 'British' and the Union Flag will also be reflected in the Love Pork campaigns, including Feed the Family for Less. This will expand to export activities, where our event stands will prominently feature the Union Flag. 

Both the World Trade Organisation subsidy rules and the new UK Subsidy Control Act do not prevent us from using 'British' and the Union Flag in marketing campaigns provided it does not disrupt international trade.

This exciting opportunity allows us to better support levy payers and levy spend on promotional activities.  

Like previous We Eat Balanced campaigns, consumers will be educated on the numerous nutritional benefits of incorporating lean red meat and dairy into their diet. These include vitamin B12, an essential nutrient not naturally present in foods of plant origin.

'Supporting British farming'

The campaign advert will feature on social media, in newspapers, video on demand and in the stores of eight major supermarkets, where on-pack stickers will include links to direct shoppers to healthy meat and dairy recipes.

Our Marketing Director, Liam Byrne, said:

"We are incredibly proud that we have raised the bar yet again for 2023 with our industry-leading We Eat Balanced campaign.  

"By incorporating the 'British' message, which we know is important to consumers, our aim is to highlight the exceptional taste and quality of our home-grown meat and dairy while advocating its role in a nutritionally balanced and sustainable diet.  

"We believe that through these efforts, we can foster a strong and enduring connection between consumers and our British farmers, who are so passionate about providing quality and sustainable food at every step of its journey, from field to fork."

AHDB Beef & Lamb board member James Shouler added:

"It is encouraging to see a campaign equipping consumers with facts about a healthy diet that is also sustainably produced. The We Eat Balanced campaign is supporting the British farming industry at a time when there is a plethora of imbalanced information about nutrition and food production."

Similarly, dairy farmer Charles Goadby, shared his excitement:

"It is good to learn that 'British' will be included in AHDB's marketing campaigns and exports activities going forward. We need to continue sharing the positive stories of British farming through various channels."

We encourage all levy payers and farming influencers to engage with the We Eat Balanced campaign through the website weeatbalanced.co.uk, as well as resources, assets, merchandise, Instagram and Facebook.