Ode to Milk

TOMA LECHE Ironic Poems Touting the Benefits of Milk Go Viral

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif., June 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Celebrated poets of all-time like Pablo Neruda and Sandra Cisneros have found inspiration in love, anguish, war and peace. Poems touch the heart, tingle the senses and ignite the soul. Sonnets can make people laugh and cry simultaneously. But can they make you drink milk? The California Milk Processor Board (CMPB) - the creator of GOT MILK? and TOMA LECHE - is hoping to do just that with a viral "video poems" campaign targeting bilingual 18 to 24-year-old Hispanics.

"The video poems are laugh-out-loud funny, with a serious message," says Steve James, executive director of the CMPB. "This is just another way to connect with young Latinos and to remind them about the health and beauty benefits of drinking milk."

According to a Scarborough Research report highlighted in a recent New York Times article, Hispanics between the ages of 18-34 years old are 21 percent more likely to download media content online than other demographic groups.(1)

CMPB advertising partner Grupo Gallegos produced three 45-second video poems that are intentionally cheesy, sappy and ironic to illustrate milk's power to produce strong, healthy teeth, and shiny hair as well as smooth, soft skin. The videos' beauty messages are featured today on social networking sites including Facebook, YouTube, Migente.com and Quepasa.com where Latinos can enjoy and pass them on to family and friends.

"These videos are amusing and witty and have all the right elements to create a buzz among young Latinos," says James.

The poems are narrated by a dreamy male voice, with classical music of Bach, Beethoven and Massenet in the background, and the words of the poems scroll across the screen like movie credits. Each mock-romantic poem concludes with the line: "No one writes poems about..." as a reminder of the power of milk to contribute to health and beauty.

The first poem, touting the importance of drinking milk for strong, healthy, shiny teeth, is an ode to the smile of a woman who, without the "wonder tonic," is left with teeth "as yellow as the radiant sun." Her lover proposes permanently erasing the image of her unsightly teeth by sealing her mouth with an eternal kiss. The poem ends with the tagline, "No one writes poems about ugly teeth... Inspire them...TOMA LECHE."

The second poem mockingly praises a woman for her dull, frail and weak hair. Her lover tenderly caresses her limp curls, which break off in his hand. To remind young adults that drinking milk can help produce the beautiful, shiny hair they've always wanted, the video closes with, "The proteins in milk help hair grow strong and healthy."

The third poem informs viewers that milk can also help produce smooth skin. The poetry speaks of a woman's rough, dry and cracked skin, comparing it to the dried-out desert and a nail file. Similar to the other two, the video ends with the line, "No one writes poems about dry skin. Inspire them."

For more information on the health and beauty benefits of drinking milk, visit www.tomaleche.com.

About the CMPB

The California Milk Processor Board was established in 1993 to make milk more competitive and increase milk consumption in California. Awareness of GOT MILK? is over 90% nationally and it is considered one of the most important and successful campaigns in history. GOT MILK? is a federally registered trademark that has been licensed by the national dairy boards since 1995. The CMPB's Spanish-language campaign began in 1994 using the tagline "Familia, Amor y Leche" (Family, Love and Milk). The TOMA LECHE (Drink Milk) campaign replaced it in 2006, following a growing trend in Hispanic food advertising that uses wit and humor to reach audiences. GOT MILK? gifts and recipes can be viewed at www.gotmilk.com and www.tomaleche.com. The CMPB is funded by all California milk processors and administered by the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

(1) Wayne, Teddy. "The Hispanic Audience Grows Online." The New York Times. 3 May 2009. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/technology/internet/04drill.html.

SOURCE The California Milk Processor Board

RELATED LINKS
http://www.gotmilk.com
http://www.tomaleche.com/