Fact Check

Oreo: Milk's Favorite Cookie

Image shows an advertisement for Oreo cookies featuring a breast-feeding baby?

Published April 23, 2012

Claim:

Claim:   Image shows an advertisement for Oreo cookies featuring a breast-feeding baby.


PARTLY TRUE


Example:   [Collected via e-mail, April 2012]


Is this a real ad for Oreo cookies? It seems too racy to be real.




 

Origins:   The above-displayed ad for Oreo cookies showing a baby suckling at its mother's breast while clutching an Oreo in one hand, with the tagline "Milk's Favorite Cookie" in the bottom right-hand corner, began circulating on the Internet in April 2012 accompanied by claims that it was a real advertisement which parent company Kraft Foods was running in South Korean markets.

Although Kraft Foods stated that the ad was not run in South Korea (or anywhere else) and was not intended for public consumption, they did acknowledge that it was created by their agency (rather than by a prankster) for an advertising forum:



A viral Oreo ad featuring a breastfeeding baby and the tagline “Milk’s Favorite Cookie,” was never meant to go public, the company says.

The provocative ad shows a woman’s exposed breast and the breastfeeding baby clenching one of the chocolate cookies, and sparked controversy after several media outlets reported it was legitimate and running in South Korea. But Kraft Foods, Oreo’s parent company, says it didn’t create the ad.

“This ad was created by our agency for a one-time use at an advertising forum,” a spokesperson for Kraft said in a statement. “The ad was never intended for public distribution or use with consumers.”

“It has never run in Korea or any other markets.”


The ad was created by the South Korean branch of Cheil Worldwide and entitled "Basic Instinct."

Last updated:   23 April 2012


Sources:




    Murray, Rheana.   "Oreo Breastfeeding Ad Was Never Supposed to Go Public, Kraft Says."

    [New York] Daily News.   19 April 2012.


David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994.