Salmon Tasmania\u2019s \u201cTasmanians Depend on Salmon\u201d campaign included a commercial featuring the owner of an underwater robotics company, who speaks of the thriving marine conditions at a fish farm in Nubeena.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, it\u2019s definitely not what the critics say it is\u201d, he says, followed by \u201cthe idea that the salmon industry isn\u2019t transparent is frustrating\u201d and \u201cdon\u2019t just believe everything you hear\u201d.<\/p>\n
A 90-second version of the commercial was screened across television networks, cinemas and streaming platforms. <\/p>\n
A shorter 15-second commercial ran on social media.<\/p>\n
Salmon Tasmania pulled the campaign from all platforms last month after Ad Standards found it breached environmental codes by creating a false impression of the salmon farming industry beyond Nubeena.<\/p>\n
Salmon Tasmania subsequently initiated an independent review of the regulator\u2019s decision, which recommended the panel further examine its evidence, including environmental reports.<\/p>\n
The decision was successfully appealed on July 22, allowing Salmon Tasmania to continue running the ad across all platforms.<\/p>\n
According to the independent reviewer, the panel had unreasonably interpreted the ad as making claims about all Tasmanian salmon farms and had not sufficiently considered scientific evidence \u2013 including monitoring data and data from the Environmental Protection Authority \u2013 provided to support the accuracy of the Nubeena footage.<\/p>\n
In their appeal submission, Salmon Tasmania argued the panel had wrongly applied a \u201cuniversality\u201d test across all salmon farms, failing to recognise the differing conditions at each. They said the panel had unfairly relied on the anonymous complainant\u2019s reference to Macquarie Harbour, where salmon farming remains a major threat to the endangered Maugean skate.<\/a><\/p>\n The panel accepted the findings.<\/p>\n \u201cHaving regard for the submission from the parties and the recommendation of the independent reviewer, the Panel considered that the ad depicted scenarios and made claims that were contextualised and specific to the Nubeena area,\u201d its case report states.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Panel considered that the evidence provided by the advertiser was sufficient to justify the claims and visuals in the ad. As such, the Panel considered that the ad appeared to be factually correct and accurate, and unlikely to mislead people about the environmental conditions or impact of salmon farming in the Nubeena area.\u201d<\/p>\n The report is available online via the Ad Standards website. <\/p>\n The commercial in question was one of seven in the \u201cTasmanians Depend on Salmon\u201d campaign.<\/p>\n Launched in April, the campaign centred on testimonials from workers in and adjacent to the salmon farming industry.<\/p>\n The advertising blitz came after data revealed more than 9,000 tonnes of farmed salmon died in the state <\/a>during the first three months of the year.<\/p>\n