Ottawa’s Banfield Agency is set to create a new public service campaign warning of the dangers of driving under the influence of drugs for the Partnership for a Drug Free Canada (PDFC).
The agency announced Tuesday that it has been selected following a “brief search” to handle the pro bono account. The agency will pick up on the PDFC’s first high driving campaign, created by BBDO Toronto, launched last winter.
Like that campaign, Banfield’s January 2015 work will aim to build awareness about impaired driving (particularly the effects of marijuana) among parents of young drivers. A PDFC-commissioned study found marijuana is among the top drugs used by fatally injured drivers.
In a release PDFC, executive director Marc Paris said the group was looking for an agency that “carried the same passion as [the PDFC] for the cause of preventing teen drug abuse.”
“Banfield has the expertise and experience to continue the fabulous pro bono work provided by our previous agencies” he said.
PDFC work from BBDO Toronto
The campaign is one of the largest PSA initiatives in Canada. Each month the group’s donated media space accounts for $1.2 million in ad spend.
With the previous high driving campaign having come to a close, the group is currently running a campaign in partnership with Shoppers Drug Mart and Pharmaprix that focuses on returning unused and expired medications to pharmacies.
