PUSHING back against the politically-correct trend of calling people ‘un-Australian’, is the latest lamb ad for Australia Day, but there have always been serious industry strategies behind it.

Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA)’s typically tongue-in-cheek annual marketing campaign has recently launched – this time a three-minute short film depicting an alternate reality which sees people being called out for being “un-Australian” before being banished to “un-Australia” – an infinite cultural exile.

Finding themselves in the lifeless desert are bewildered Aussies who’ve committed unthinkable offences - from switching off the test cricket, eating a meat pie with a knife and fork, to dobbing.

When ‘lambassador’, Sam Kekovich appears in a cloud of smoke, alongside a sizzling BBQ with perfectly searing lamb – for saying “Bon Appétit” - it’s clear all this “un-Australian” accusing has gone too far.

MLA domestic market manager, Graeme Yardy, said the campaign was a light-hearted way to poke fun at a troubling tendency.

“The use of “un-Australian” has got out of control, everything from how you eat your pie to having a wedding on Grand Final day is on the chopping block,” he said.

“Chances are you’ll be viewed as “un-Australian” by someone! What makes Australia great is that we celebrate our differences.

“Lamb is famous for bringing Aussies together, so what better way to cut through this division and help us come together over these collective differences than with a good lamb BBQ.”

“As ever, this campaign is topical, tongue in cheek and positions lamb as the meat of choice to unite us.”

The research confirmed that national foods and eating habits are also sacred, with a Bunnings with no sausage sizzle (28 per cent), eating a pie with a knife and fork (27 per cent) and toasting fairy bread (24 per cent) all being called out as “un-Australian”.

Some of the top actions deemed “un-Australian” were:

Admitting to not knowing who Shane Warne is (47 per cent)

Having a wedding on Grand Final Day (44 per cent)

Supporting New Zealand against ANY other team (39 per cent)

Not knowing who’s playing State of Origin (30 per cent)

Although irreverent, the new instalment builds on what has now been a very successful long-term marketing strategy of the MLA since the 1990s.

In the late 1980s lamb attracted low auction prices, with fluctuating quality and an ‘old fashioned’ image labelling it an inferior choice to skinless chicken breast fillets and ‘New Fashioned Pork’.

Lamb was primarily a wool industry by-product: production was dominated by very seasonal supply and domestic market requirements, with per capita consumption declining rapidly at five per cent per year.

Consumer tracking studies showed that lamb was losing ground with younger consumers due to its perceived fattiness, wastage, lack of versatility and difficulty to cook.

With campaigns such as ‘Trim Lamb’ and ‘We Love Our Lamb’ beginning to reverse the trend in the 1990s and early 2000s, the stage was set in January 2005 for the first of the iconic ads - not that the simple production values gave any clue for what would follow.

Mr Kekovich appeared in the Australia Day campaign, a 90-second one-take deadpan monologue direct into camera – ironically decrying “un-Australian” behaviour – and the tradition went from there.

“Look at our national song, ‘Waltzing Matilda’,” he said.

“It’s about a bloke trying to get a nice bit of lamb into his tucker bag, not spicy chicken wings.”

In 2006: “So don’t be un-Australian. Serve lamb on Australia Day. You know it makes sense. I’m Sam Kekovich.”

Subsequent commercials got much bigger and more adventurous, with the 2015 version “Richie’s BBQ” invoking historic figures like Captain Cook and Ned Kelly, and claiming ‘TV Ad of the Year’ at the annual Mumbrella media awards with a popular vote of 41,000.

That campaign saw a 35.3 per cent sales lift versus the weekly average, for the week preceding Australia Day and media coverage of the campaign also reached over 69 million people.

The following year’s effort also received the best ad award for “Operation Boomerang”, where Kekovich was joined by cult SBS newsreader Lee Lin Chin and a host of Australian icons, on a mission to save Australians abroad from going without lamb BBQ on Australia Day.

The campaign video was watched over 5.5 million times online and generated 1310 pieces of media coverage which delivered a cumulative audience in excess of 423 million worldwide.

At the time, MLA group marketing manager Andrew Howie said it was “MLA’s most successful Australia Day campaign on record” and it returned a similar sales lift as the previous year.

“By continuing to promote Australian lamb as a quality product we are seeing demand strengthen - ultimately delivering value back to the farm gate,” he said.

MLA central marketing general manager during 2015-16, Lisa Sharp said recognition for both beef and lamb ads underpinned MLA’s whole body of work.

“We are delighted to receive these accolades from industry, particularly going up against some of the best in the business, and with a significantly smaller budget,” she said.

“For MLA, what matters most is driving demand for red meat in Australia. We will continue to be relentless in our pursuit of effective marketing programs that deliver returns for producers and right across the industry.”