New brand mascot, Fred the Fox, calls for Brits to ‘give chicken the night off’ as research reveals more than half are bored of chicken
Protein challenger, Better Nature, is taking on one of the biggest campaigns in Food & Drink with the launch of its first ever out-of-home campaign -‘Believe in Tempeh’- as the challenger brand looks to give Britain’s chicken habit a night off.
The stunt sees Better Nature take aim at KFC’s ‘Believe in Chicken’ campaign, using two high-impact billboards in London to turn the spotlight from chicken to tempeh.
It coincides with new research¹ that finds more than half of Brits (54%) are bored of chicken, with 35% open to trying new protein options and 19% ready to swap out chicken one night a week, suggesting Britain’s chicken habit is ripe for a rethink.
With the unexpected pairing of a paw and a piece of tempeh, the campaign takes a playful swipe at the UK’s biggest chicken brand, asking people to ‘Believe in Tempeh’ with a simple proposition: there’s no need to give up chicken or make a dramatic lifestyle change. Just give it a well-earned night off on a Wednesday.
The launch also marks the first public appearance of Fred the Fox, Better Nature’s distinctive new chicken-loving brand mascot. Developed over several months, Fred is designed to give the brand a recognisable character and bring its challenger positioning to life in a playful and memorable way.
“We’ve spent months working on this campaign, so we knew Fred’s first moment couldn’t be quiet” says Elin Roberts, Co-founder & CEO at Better Nature. “The research tells us something interesting: with almost 1 in 3 (32%) buying chicken on autopilot, it may be the default protein for many shoppers, but that doesn’t mean they are excited by it. More than half Brits are bored of chicken, which gives us a brilliant opportunity to invite people to try something different.
“The big chicken companies have put chicken firmly into the cultural conversation. We didn’t want to compete with that. We wanted to play with it. If they can get Britain believing in chicken, we can get Britain thinking about what else could be on their plate.
“We’re not asking anyone to give up chicken. We’re just saying, why not give it a night off once a week and try something different? Our tempeh soaks up flavour better than any other protein, brings something new to the pan, and gives people a healthier protein option with more good inside when they want to mix things up.”
The Protein Doctor Dr Ando Ahnan-Winarno, Co-founder & COO at Better Nature adds: “If everyone in the UK swapped chicken for tempeh for just one night a week, we’d add 457 tonnes of fibre to the nation’s diet every single week². With Britain facing a national fibre gap and 96% of UK adults failing to hit their 30g daily fibre target³, this one small swap could make a big difference.
“Tempeh is a brilliant swap for chicken as it not only delivers a similar amount of protein, but it’s also full of fibre and (as a fermented protein) it’s packed with gut-friendly goodness too.
“We know that chicken lovers are not prepared to compromise on taste, which is why at Better Nature we’ve spent years refining our tempeh to make it flavour-hungry, which means it soaks up flavour more deeply & evenly to taste of the best things in the pan.”
‘Believe in Tempeh’ marks the start of Better Nature’s biggest marketing campaign to date, leading with its new brand mascot, Fred the Fox, to encourage consumers to give chicken the night off.
¹Better Nature/Attest survey of 1,000 British consumers, August 2026
Source: Better Nature
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