Ethanol group launches ad campaign against oil industry
Source: Amanda Peterka, E&E reporter • Posted: Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Ethanol group Growth Energy today launched a new advertising campaign to fight back against attacks from the oil industry.
The ad, which is appearing on major national cable networks, features “Mr. Slick,” a caricature ventriloquist meant to represent the oil industry, and a puppet named “Dummy” meant to represent the American public. The ventriloquist attempts to quiet the Dummy as it claims that big oil is afraid of ethanol because the fuel will take away from its market share.
“Why doesn’t Big Oil want you to know the truth about ethanol?” a voiceover says at the end. “You’re no dummy. Don’t let the oil industry treat you like one.”
Along with the TV ad, which will appear on Fox, CNN, MSNBC and RFD TV, Growth Energy today also launched ads on the radio and in print, and a website, www.YoureNoDummy.com. The effort is a “multimillion-dollar campaign,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy.
The campaign is to “fight back against Big Oil’s effort to stop the growth of clean, green renewable fuels,” he said on a conference call today. “Thus far, Big Oil has done everything in its power to block competition.”
The American Petroleum Institute has pressed Congress this year to repeal the renewable fuel standard, the national biofuels mandate that calls for yearly increases in the amount of ethanol and advanced biofuels that must be blended into the nation’s fuel supply. The oil and gas group last month launched a new TV campaign tying engine damage to ethanol use.
Growth Energy and other biofuels trade groups are calling on Congress to keep the standard in place and allow U.S. EPA to use its authority to make any changes to its annual requirements. They say it has helped reduce dependence on foreign oil, grow rural economies and lower greenhouse gas emissions.