An NAD decision for us to chew on: is this beef jerky really claiming it's "the best," or is it just puffery?
Link Snacks, Inc. brought an NAD challenge against competitor Old Trapper Smoked Products, Inc. for claims that Old Trapper's Smoked Beef Jerky is "clearly the best beef jerky." Link Snacks asserted that the advertising conveys false, misleading, and unqualified superiority claims that Old Trapper's beef jerky is objectively better than its other jerky competitors. The claims appeared on its product packaging, company website, and in a YouTube video.
Old Trapper insisted the "best" claims were merely puffery; it did not compare the product to a competitor, did not convey a comparative superiority message, and the use of "best" was not tied to any measurable attribute. It went even further to explain that the use of "clearly" in its "clearly the best" claim was merely a play on words, as the company has historically used clear packaging for its products and have since used the word "clearly" to describe such packaging.
So, is Old Trapper really asserting its beef jerky is the best out there, or is it just puffery? According to NAD, when it comes to the question of whether "best" claims constitute puffery (or if they are instead objective claims that require substantiation), the determination depends on the context of the advertisement. Here, NAD determined that when used on its product packaging and on its website, "clearly the best" conveys a message of corporate pride. Further, NAD found that because no specific competitor is identified, the use of "best" is not comparative, and thus the claims are puffery.
In addition to its "best" claims, the jerky-maker made claims about its ingredients, including "We use only the highest quality ingredients in every Old Trapper flavor. That's just one of the reasons why Old Trapper is #ClearlyTheBest," among other claims. The claim was displayed alongside visuals of animated ingredients. NAD found that this was an objective claim that required support that Old Trapper uses the highest quality ingredients, which Old Trapper did not provide. NAD therefore recommended the claim be discontinued.
Old Trapper Smoked Products, Inc. (Old Trapper Smoked Beef Jerky ), NAD/CARU Case Reports (December 2023)
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