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Swedish brand Oatly has received backlash from Brighton and Hove City Council over its pro-vegan mural located on 2 Gardner Street.
The advert, that reads ‘Go Ahead, Eat Like A Vegan’, was created by Oatly as part of a campaign to promote its new dairy-free ice-cream. Signs and posters have also been spotted around London – including a gigantic banner in Waterloo Station.
‘No permission’
According to The Argus, a spokesperson for Brighton and Hove City Council said: “No permission was given for this mural to be put up. It is due to be removed on December 16.
“We’ll visit the property again after this date to check it has been cleared.”
‘Standard practice’
In a statement sent to Plant Based News, Oatly said:”The Gardner Street mural space has been used for numerous commercial designs over the years. We’ve been advised by our specialist Out of Home supplier that it is not standard practice or industry-wide precedent for the local council to provide consent for branded murals, as permission is granted by the landlord.
“However, in order to follow due diligence, prior to painting the design, our supplier applied to Brighton & Hove City Council via its planning portal. Further to the application being received, our supplier also had a verbal conversation with a representative from the council’s Planning Department, at no point were any concerns or objections raised.
“We took a recommendation from our supplier that this was the standard and correct process, but we welcome the council and industry to review and clarify the process. The current mural will be removed on December 16 ?as always planned, the council has not requested that it is removed any earlier. We will re-look at our Out of Home processes for future campaigns.”
Brighton and Hove City Council state the applications were submitted but were never determined
