New advertising for Anchor butter this summer will feature the old-fashioned buttercup test as owner Arla repositions the brand as the only free-range option on the market.

TV ads featuring the childhood method of checking whether someone likes butter will kick off in July. It will be preceded by press and online ads featuring quirky slogans, as well as in--store actvity, as part of a £10m spend.

Arla has come up with the concept of Anchor being 'The Free Range Butter Company' in order to establish the brand in consumers' minds as the only butter made using milk from cows that have a free-range lifestyle and constant access to fresh grass.

"To consumers, free-range means better quality, more natural, up-to-date, healthier, ethical and better-tasting," said senior brand manager Lorraine Crowe. "Honing in on the free-range status of Anchor butter gives us an 'ownable' position and a clear distinction."

In research, consumers bought into the free-range concept. They also found the buttercup test creative highly appealing."

The first phase of the campaign aims to get across the idea of free-range positioning and kicks off later this month with advertising in women's titles and weekend supplements, and 48-sheet posters.

These carry messages such as: 'Sunshine, fresh air and grass, our not-so-secret recipe' and 'If cows were meant to be kept indoors they'd be born with slippers'.

Artwork for the executions features a grass background and echoes other brands that have ploughed a 'natural' marketing furrow.

The second burst of activity is scheduled for the back-to-school period and includes more television advertising, a direct marketing door drop and new packaging.

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