Protein brand Better Nature has launched its first out-of-home advertising campaign, taking aim at Britain’s love of chicken while encouraging consumers to explore alternative protein options.
The new campaign, Believe in Tempeh, features two billboards in London and playfully references KFC’s well-known Believe in Chicken marketing activity. The initiative forms part of Better Nature’s biggest marketing push to date and introduces Fred the Fox, the company’s new brand mascot.
The campaign launch coincides with research commissioned by Better Nature, which found that 54% of Brits are bored of chicken, while 35% are open to trying new protein sources. The survey also revealed that 19% would consider replacing chicken with an alternative protein one night a week.
Rather than encouraging consumers to stop eating chicken altogether, Better Nature is positioning tempeh as an additional option for mealtimes, with the campaign encouraging people to “give chicken the night off” once a week.
“We’ve spent months working on this campaign, so we knew Fred’s first moment couldn’t be quiet,” said Elin Roberts, Co-founder and CEO at Better Nature. “The research tells us something interesting: with almost 1 in 3 (32%) buying chicken on autopilot, it may be the default protein for many shoppers, but that doesn’t mean they are excited by it. More than half Brits are bored of chicken, which gives us a brilliant opportunity to invite people to try something different.
“The big chicken companies have put chicken firmly into the cultural conversation. We didn’t want to compete with that. We wanted to play with it. If they can get Britain believing in chicken, we can get Britain thinking about what else could be on their plate.
“We’re not asking anyone to give up chicken. We’re just saying, why not give it a night off once a week and try something different? Our tempeh soaks up flavour better than any other protein, brings something new to the pan, and gives people a healthier protein option with more good inside when they want to mix things up.”
Dr Ando Ahnan-Winarno, Co-founder and COO at Better Nature, added: “If everyone in the UK swapped chicken for tempeh for just one night a week, we’d add 457 tonnes of fibre to the nation’s diet every single week. With Britain facing a national fibre gap and 96% of UK adults failing to hit their 30g daily fibre target, this one small swap could make a big difference.
“Tempeh is a brilliant swap for chicken as it not only delivers a similar amount of protein, but it’s also full of fibre and (as a fermented protein) it’s packed with gut-friendly goodness too.
“We know that chicken lovers are not prepared to compromise on taste, which is why at Better Nature we’ve spent years refining our tempeh to make it flavour-hungry, which means it soaks up flavour more deeply & evenly to taste of the best things in the pan.”
The campaign marks a significant step for Better Nature as it looks to increase awareness of tempeh and encourage consumers to diversify their protein choices.
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