Meadow Fresh takes out February Kantar Ad Impact Award

The Kantar Ad Impact Award winner for February is Meadow Fresh’s ‘Fantasy Herd’ campaign.

It’s a perfect case study in what modern creative effectiveness looks like judged through a proven measurement matrix: engagement, association and predisposition, says Kantar.

The award was judged for the first time using Kantar’s measurement tool, Link AI. This is an AI‑powered creative effectiveness measurement tool. The Link framework gives marketers decision‑quality intelligence they can use to plan, test, optimise and improve creative at speed, without sacrificing rigour.

This is an established tool for Kantar, now being used for the first time with the Ad impact Awards.

Celebrating dairy farming

At its core, the campaign transforms a familiar Kiwi obsession – sports drafts – into a playful, interactive platform that celebrates dairy farming in a completely unexpected way.

The result is distinctive branding done right. A genuinely ownable idea that invites participation, fuels conversation and builds salience far beyond the ad break.

Earning its place in culture

By turning cows into athletes and farmers into heroes, Meadow Fresh injects fresh social currency into a crowded category. Borrowing the tension and theatre of Draft Week, and blending it with local humour and credible innovation, the campaign earns its place in culture rather than borrowing it.

Real rewards, real data and a sense of playful competition make it talkable, sharable and memorable.

Most importantly, ‘Fantasy Herd’ taps something deeply Kiwi: our love of competition, ingenuity and not taking ourselves too seriously. It elevates an essential industry into modern pop culture, strengthening Meadow Fresh’s meaningful difference and positioning the brand as proudly local, forward‑thinking and unafraid to lead rather than follow category norms.

Together, these elements deliver what effective creativity should: brand affinity, cultural relevance and commercial impact, working in harmony.

Turning farm data into something uniquely Kiwi

Goodman Fielder marketing manager Jenn Jones says the Meadow Fresh campaign was born from a simple but powerful insight.

“Most Kiwis only ever see dairy as the finished product, not the world of care, technology and innovation behind it. We wanted to bring them closer by turning real farm data into something fun, competitive and uniquely Kiwi.”

She credits the success to bold collaboration across creative and media partners. The recognition is a testament to “the creativity, bravery and craft” behind the idea, she adds.

For Kantar, ‘Fantasy Herd’ is proof that when creativity is both culturally fluent and strategically sound, effectiveness follows. And with AI‑powered creative intelligence now part of the judging process, the industry has fewer excuses and better tools than ever to make work that truly earns its impact.

To enter the awards with your own creative, reach out to Talha.Waqas@kantar.com

This article was published in StopPress news March 2026.