Jolly Green Giant absent from Pilsbury campaign

Pilsbury Ireland has a new campaign for its latest range of Green Giant frozen foods. The 30-second TV ad created by the brand's London agency Leo Burnett will be shown on RTE and Network 2 in the next three weeks, with a media outlay of £55,000 (€69,840). The frozen vegetable market is worth £19 million and is dynamic thanks largely to the growth in demand for ready meals and also to the trend towards microwave-able products. The company says the campaign will target ABC1 housekeepers. This might help to explain the absence of the jolly Green Giant in this classy low-key commercial, though the company says the absence of the brand's iconic advertising figure is part of a strategy to encourage consumers to focus on the product quality and values.

Once again Bovril will be the main sponsors of the Trinity Ball on May 14th. This year sponsorship will be worth about £30,000 (€41,900) and Ms Mary Keating, Bovril's marketing manager, plans to get maximum value for money with extensive branding on the night, several competitions, a tie-up with 98 FM and a Bovril bar. These proved surprisingly popular last year with students whose spaghetti straps precluded the wearing of a vest on what turned out to be a fairly chilly night.

There will also be a virtual Trinity Ball with a web site at www.bovril.com featuring interviews with revellers and snippets of music, which is bound to be a favourite among nostalgic ex-pat graduates.

Wilson Hartnell PR has won the RIAC motor sport account after a four-way pitch that included Heneghan's, Bill O'Herlihy PR and Slattery's PR. The sporting categories whose image will be boosted include the very low profile carting and midget-car racing, as well as rallying and racing. The reason for the timing of the appointment of a PR consultancy is RIAC's ambition "to achieve some benefit from current attractiveness of Formula One", says the RIAC general manager, Mr Alex Sinclair.