Fage Greek yoghurt ad

As competition continues to heat up in the Greek and Greek-style yoghurt market, Total Greek Yoghurt maker Fage is looking to make the most of its Greek heritage with a new TV campaign that goes live tomorrow.

The ad, which will be aired for the first time during the final of ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent on Saturday (8 June), depicts idyllic village life in 1920s Greece, and describes Fage’s yoghurt as “unchanged since 1926”.

Fage said it would mark out its Greek yoghurt, which is made in Greece, as “the real deal in a world of Greek-style pretenders”.

“British consumers are becoming savvier when it comes to food transparency”

Andrew Turton, Fage

“British consumers are becoming savvier when it comes to food transparency,” said marketing director Andrew Turton. “They want to know the story of their food – what’s in the products they buy and where their food has come from. They are valuing the benefit of naturally delicious and healthy foods, especially those guaranteed with a clear provenance and heritage.”

A 40-second version of the ad, which was created by AMV BBDO, will run on ITV throughout June, with a 10-second version and a longer online version for support. Fage, which said it had increased its advertising spend for 2013, will also advertise on ITV Player (ITV’s video-on-demand network) using interactive ad format Ad Explore, which allows viewers to access related content – such as recipe ideas and brand history – by clicking on the ad.

In addition, Fage is supporting the new ad with PR, in-store and social-media activity, and is revamping its website.

The launch of the new campaign comes as interest in Greek and Greek-style yoghurt is soaring, and brands are increasingly competing to stand out in a busy category. There has also been controversy over the right to describe products as ‘Greek’ rather than ‘Greek-style’, with Fage successfully suing US yoghurt maker Chobani, which sold its US-made yoghurts as ‘Greek’.

Fage’s previous TV campaign – which ran from 2010 to 2012 – involved animated cartoon characters Cow, Zebra and Spoonbill.