F***OFF.CA: Sign the most un-Canadian letter ever written!
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 1 hour ago
Client: Pacific Wild Alliance
The following program was awarded Best Campaign of the Year by the Canadian Public Relations Society’s ACE Awards (Achieving Communications Excellence) in 2025.
It also won:
🥇 Gold – Brand Development Campaign of the Year
🥇 Gold – Digital Communications Campaign of the Year
🥈 Silver – Best Use of Media Relations
🥉 Bronze – Best Cause-Related Campaign
Business challenge:
Pacific Wild has long fought to protect wild Pacific salmon, a keystone species in British Columbia’s coastal ecosystem and a vital resource for wildlife, First Nations communities and the broader marine environment. In 2019, the federal government committed to transitioning away from open-net pen salmon farms in B.C. coastal waters by 2025. But in June 2024, that promise was broken, with the government extending salmon farming licences for another five years and leaving no transition plan in place. Pacific Wild needed to respond quickly and forcefully. The challenge was to break through a crowded, long-running environmental debate, elevate the issue from a regional concern to a national conversation, and motivate everyday Canadians, not just traditional activists, to send a clear message to elected officials: wild salmon simply cannot wait another five years.
Solution:
Together with Pacific Wild and Maximum Effort, Edery & Lord launched F***OFF.CA, a bold advocacy campaign that channelled Canadian frustration into one unapologetically memorable action: sign the most un-Canadian letter ever written! The integrated campaign centred on a witty, profanity-laced video featuring William Shatner, Kirk McLean, Mary Galloway and everyday Canadians telling the salmon farming industry to get out of B.C.’s coastal waters. Hosted on a dedicated microsite, the creative directed audiences to send a pre-written letter to federal decision-makers, transforming outrage into immediate civic action. To generate national visibility, Edery & Lord led an aggressive earned media campaign timed to launch immediately after the government’s licence-extension announcement. Customized outreach targeted national, regional and local media across print, broadcast and online platforms, supported by a censored, broadcast-ready version of the campaign video and media-trained spokespeople.
When the salmon farming industry mounted a counter-response, the team managed the issue strategically, redirecting media attention toward the broad First Nations opposition to open-net pen farms, effectively securing credible, counter-voices to keep the campaign’s message dominant in the public conversation.
Results:
The campaign exploded nationally, generating 1,136 editorial stories and a total audience reach of 323 million. Media quality also surpassed benchmarks, with an MRP score of 79 per cent and a cost per contact of just $0.00005. This PR program converted attention directly into action: 7,600 unique visitors came to Foff.ca and 2,927 letters were sent to elected officials. Most importantly, this initiative enabled Pacific Wild to significantly strengthen its influence with decision-makers, opening the door to substantive dialogue around a transition plan for salmon farming in B.C.