AN ADVERT for trendy goats' milk products have been banned by watchdogs for suggesting they could protect people from coronavirus.

British business Chuckling Goat claimed its kefir products could boost immunity and help fight viruses and flu.

But the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) said the ads, which appeared last month, breached the rules surrounding products sold to prevent, treat or cure disease.

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The investigation, which was fast-tracked as part of the ASA's focus on prioritising and tackling ads that exploit health related anxieties during the pandemic, ruled the adverts misleading.

Poster ads seen on buses in Reading town centre suggested Chuckling Goat products could help protect against viruses and flu by boosting your immune system.

They featured an image of a goat and the claim "The Gut Health Experts", with larger text reading, "What's your best defence against any virus? Boost your immune system".

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The company's website featured tabs titled "The Flu" and "Viruses" which stated scientists had linked disturbances in gut microbiome with a weakened immune system that can leave you vulnerable to catching the flu.

The pages claimed improving gut health was a direct way to boost your immune system and listed their products which they said could help.

'Probiotic Goats Milk Kefir', 'Complete Prebiotic', 'Microbiome Test' and 'CG oil' were listed as immunity boosters.

A link to further advice was given, but the web page itself featured no written advice and only gave the option to chat with a member of Chuckling Goat's team via an instant messaging service.

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The ASA ruled the ads were misleading and ordered the Chuckling Goat to end its campaign and remove the pages from its site.

They said customers who were already familiar with the brand would associate it with its kefir-based products and interpret the claims in the ad as relating to the brand's food products.

But the ASA argued consumers unfamiliar with Chuckling Goat would think the brand was offering advice, linked to gut health, about how to prevent catching viruses.

And once people followed through to the website there was no advice, just links to buy food products.

The claim that boosting your immune system is the best defence against any virus implied Chuckling Goat products could help prevent people from catching Covid-19, according to the ASA.

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It was therefore a claim that a food could prevent, treat or cure human disease, which is prohibited under the advertising code.

An ASA spokesman said: "We told Chuckling Goat Ltd to ensure future ads did not state or imply that their food products could prevent, treat or cure human disease and to ensure that any health claims made in their future advertising were authorised on the EU Register and met the conditions of use, and did not exaggerate the meaning, of the relevant authorised claim."

A Chuckling Goat spokesperson said the poster ad campaign had finished and they had taken down the relevant pages from the website.

The firm said said it did not intentionally violate any standards.