Sid the Slug is an

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

character created by the

Food Standards Agency , type = Non-ministerial government department , nativename = , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = Food Standards Agency.svg , logo_width = , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = , picture_width = ...

(FSA) in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in 2004 as the mascot of the "Salt - Watch it" campaign to warn the public of the risks of excessive

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...

consumption. The

multimedia Multimedia is a form of communication that uses a combination of different content forms such as text, audio, images, animations, or video into a single interactive presentation, in contrast to tradit ...

campaign, including advertising hoardings,

television commercial A television advertisement (also called a television commercial, TV commercial, commercial, spot, television spot, TV spot, advert, television advert, TV advert, television ad, TV ad or simply an ad) is a span of television programming produce ...

s and

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

coverage, was based on the premise that salt kills slugs, and can harm humans too. The Salt Manufacturers' Association filed a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority, their complaint being that the information presented was misleading. The Advertising Standards Authority did not uphold the SMA complaint in its adjudication. The ASA had to deal with another complaint from a member of the public, that the use of the name "Sid" was offensive; this was also rejected, with the ASA instead arguing that most people would find it "

humorous Humour (Commonwealth English) or humor (American English) is the tendency of experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement. The term derives from the humoral medicine of the ancient Greeks, which taught that the balance of fluids in th ...

". A member of the public complained to the FSA that the Welsh subtitles in the "Sid the Slug" TV advertisements meant the FSA was not treating English and Welsh equally, as is required by the FSA Welsh Language Scheme. The FSA replied that the animation could not have been dubbed into Welsh successfully, hence the subtitles. However, the FSA accepted that it had not complied with advertising conduct, as set by the

Welsh Language Board The Welsh Language Board ( cy, Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg) was a statutory body set up by Her Majesty's Government under the Welsh Language Act 1993. It was an Assembly Sponsored Public Body. It began its life under John Walter Jones, and its last ...

br>Complaints Received by the FSA in 2004 - 2005
/ref>

References

External links

from the

Salt Manufacturers' Association
* Salt Manufacturers' Association press releas

18 October 2004 * BB
Salt firms complain over campaign
20 September 2004 * BB
Sid says salt stinks. Salt says same of Sid
23 September 2004 * '' Daily Telegraph'' (Dr James Le Fanu
In sickness and in health: take Sid the Slug's warning with a pinch of salt
* News-Medical.Net article on the SMA's complain
Salt Association hits back at 'Sid the Slug' campaign
* FS
ASA throws out complaint against Agency
12 October 2004 * FS
Complaint against Food Standards Agency ad campaign thrown out by ASA
12 October 2004 Fictional gastropods Public service announcement characters Edible salt Public information films Health campaigns 2004 films 2000s educational films Male characters in advertising British educational films {{animation-char-stub