Greenpeace Challenges Dove’s ‘Real Beauty’ with New Campaign on Plastic Pollution

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Dove’s iconic “Real Beauty” campaign, which has positioned the brand as a champion for women’s empowerment. However, Greenpeace is leveraging this milestone to challenge Dove’s reputation with a campaign titled “Toxic Influence”, bringing attention to the brand’s contribution to plastic pollution. Unilever, Dove’s parent company, is recognized as one of the world’s largest plastic polluters.

To highlight this issue, Greenpeace created a subversive version of Ogilvy’s original “Real Beauty” commercial. The new film contrasts heartwarming scenes of mothers and daughters praising Dove for its empowering messaging with stark visuals and facts about Dove’s role in the global plastic pollution crisis. The six-minute film, directed by Alice Russell, features real Dove customers for authenticity. Although participants were aware that it was a Greenpeace project, no set script was used, ensuring genuine reactions.

Greenpeace replicated the original “Real Beauty” film as closely as possible to drive home the message. The campaign aims to question Dove’s “force for good” reputation by emphasizing its parent company Unilever’s significant plastic footprint.

The “Toxic Influence” film is being promoted across YouTube, Meta, TikTok, and LinkedIn, with support from influencer partnerships. It follows last year’s “Real Harm” campaign, which included protests outside Unilever’s global headquarters in London. This latest push also aligns with Greenpeace’s call for Unilever to advocate for legally binding global regulations on plastic waste as part of the UN Global Plastics Treaty negotiations set to take place in November.

Greenpeace’s latest campaign highlights the need for brands like Dove, which present themselves as leaders in positive change, to take accountability for their environmental impact and make significant strides in reducing plastic pollution.