• October 4, 2012

Arby's' has edited one of the TV spots in its new "Slicing Up Freshness" campaign, after Iowans complained that the spot disses their state.

As previously reported in Marketing Daily, the new campaign focuses on conveying that Arby's slices its meat "fresh in  store." It includes a TV spot showing retired New York City police detective Bo Dietl seen in front of a Manhattan Subway location, then in front of a factory-like building in Mount Pleasant, Iowa where “they” slice their meat. Voiceover: “Arby’s slices fresh in store, not in a factory.” 

According to the Des Moines Register, the pushback from Iowans angered by what they perceived as Arby's' "slamming" of their state has caused Arby's to replace the original ad with a version in which the word "Iowa" has been sliced out, although the footage of Subway's Mount Pleasant facility remains.

The Register's comment: "Definitely a low-budget solution."