Sustainability is a boring and complex subject. Most of the sustainability campaigns are rather dull (we did them in the past, showing green pastures and happy Swedes, it didn’t work!) placing the solution in a distant future.

We used an entertainment format to subvert the conventions of the category and created a mockumentary placing the future of food within reach (lab grown meat solutions are already on the market).

The film follows Erik Karlsson, a Swedish entrepreneur, who believes the best proteins for humans are made from cells of Swedes, most preferably Sweden’s biggest actor Alexander Skarsgard.

Situation:

The world’s population is expected to increase from 7.8bn to 10bn by 2050. Extensive and urgent changes in food production are required if we want to meet food needs while protecting the Earth’s resources. But this urgency is not unanimous. So, we needed an idea that would stop people in their tracks and make them prioritize the subject.

Brief:

Sweden has one of the world's most sustainable food industries. The Swedish Food Federation – an industry organization with about 800 member companies from Arla and Absolut to Oatly and Orkla – wanted to share our knowledge, and in the process increase the competitive edge for Swedish food?

Objectives:

The aim was to strengthen the reputation of the Swedish food industry, thus paving the way for increased consumption of domestic food in Sweden, and exporting sustainable solutions to drive the category of conscious food consumption.

Our inspiration was the story of Magnus Söderlund, a Swedish academic who presented a study where 8% of the people asked considered eating human meat products acceptable. Blurring the edge between reality and fiction, we featured Prof. Söderlund in our film, as the catalyst of a young scientist’s ideas. Erik Karlsson is driven by an outlandish business proposition – to produce and sell lab grown human meat.

Starting from this we created an 18-minute-long mockumentary showing Karlsson’s, clumsy but determined attempts to launch Swedes as the new meat. In the film we see shock, confusion and revulsion from focus groups and investors alike when they try what they believe to be human lab-grown meat.

It’s a known fact that to preserve the current rates of population growth we need to change the way we eat. But giving up our favorite food is one of the world’s least favorite solutions.

We used an anchoring strategy positioning the future of food within reach (lab grown meat solutions are already on the market), but we make this unpalatable enough to start a debate and favor less unpleasant but equally sustainable and feasible sources of protein: the Swedish Food Federation food practices can feed the world without destroying it.

We engaged opinion leaders within culture (film festival circuit), business (venture capitalists), media (selected elite media in selected segments) and food industry (targeted efforts) to establish Swedish food on the agenda.

We used the short film format to infiltrate the film festivals circuit around the world entering the discussion from a cultural and philosophical angle.

The format was part edutainment, part mockumentary educating the audience on what we need to change in the food industry in order save ourselves and our planet.

We made the official launch during a premiere screening in Stockholm with a themed day of lectures and debates on the sustainable future of food. Our invitees were companies and decision-makers in the food industry, Swedish and foreign journalists who write about both sustainability and economics, and food influencers with a large following.

Bite size content and short film format were edited and spread through Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and audio content for podcasts where all traffic is driven to a landing page.

YouTube, @eataswede on Instagram/Facebook

With a reach of 5 million people, 500 millions of impressions and 400.000 podcasts downloads, the campaign was quickly noticed and instigated a much needed debate about our food future.

In over 100 features globally, this debate brought together members of the government, the business community, and the public.

With a 98% positive sentiment towards our campaign message, Google searches for Swedish food increased with 360% and website visits for the Swedish Food Federation increased by 2400%.

The film, guest starring Alexander Skarsgård, won Best Documentary at the Paris Play Film Festival and Official Selection at the Festival Internazionale Segni Della Note and the French Riviera Film Festival.

By moving the needle so far in the wrong direction, we were able to position ideas that previously seemed radical as more acceptable, helping people get used to the unconventional sources of protein.