CWB-Ad

Reaction to CWB's "Still on the fence?" ad campaign has been much larger than expected, says the chief strategy officer for the agency formerly known as the Canadian Wheat Board.

National media have reported on the controversy surrounding the print ad, which features a 1969 Gil Elvgren print called "Hi-Ho, Silver."  It features a young woman wearing a cowboy hat and skirt sitting on a fence.

The ad aims to convince farmers to market their grain through CWB in the new open market.

"It's received more response and reaction than we intended," says Dayna Spyring. "We wanted to put an image out there that would get farmers attention. We wanted something that stood out. We wanted to start a conversation, and I think we've done that."

"We knew it was edgy. We wanted it to be provocative and we wanted it to get people's attention. We hope that it would be the icebreaker for the conversation that really matters. We want the conversation to be about how CWB can better market your grain," she explains.

The ad has been running for several weeks, but the controversy surrounding it gained momentum and national attention last week after the National Farmers Union called it "offensive."

"What an image of a long-legged woman straddling a fence has to do with selling grain is beyond me," said Joan Brady, NFU women’s president. "The ad is offensive, and likely to cause farmers to market their grain elsewhere."

Spyring says they did not intend to upset anyone.

"It certainly wasn't our intention to offend anyone. I respect their opinions, but our intention was to start a conversation," she says. "As a woman, and as a woman in agriculture, I'm not offended by the image, and I'm pretty comfortable with our course of action here."