#Critics have a cow over sexist dairy ad

Online critics slammed this milk ad campaign as “moo-sogynistic” — and now a major dairy brand is apologizing for its bizarre commercial depicting women morphing into cows.

“We sincerely apologize to everyone who felt uncomfortable with the milk commercial,” reps for Seoul Dairy Cooperative, South Korea’s leading milk producer, said in a statement posted online in response to the backlash. “We are accepting this matter seriously … and [will] take extra care to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. We bow our heads in apology.”

The tone-deaf ad was released Sept. 29 on YouTube — but subsequently deleted on Dec. 8, only to have re-uploads of the clip go viral as social media watchdogs soured on Seoul milk, accusing the brand of objectifying women.

In the now-viral footage, a man can be seen walking through the woods with camera gear. In the background, a voice intones: “We finally managed to capture them on camera in a place of pristine cleanliness.”

Things get strange after the videographer stops to secretly film a group of women garbed in white who are drinking from a forest stream, with one lapping droplets from a leaf like a woodland critter.

The footage then cuts to the ladies doing yoga in an open field, whereupon the cameraman steps on a twig, thereby blowing his cover.

At that point, the voyeur glances up from his camera and sees that the women have shockingly transformed into a herd of cattle.

The pastoral scene concludes with the line, “Clean water, organic feed, 100% pure Seoul Milk. Organic milk from an organic ranch in the pleasant nature of Cheongyang.”

Suffice it to say, the demeaning depiction caused Twitter critics to have a cow.

“Not a single brain cell in the writing room huh,” fumed one outraged commenter under a Twitter repost of the controversial clip.

“And this is why you need diversity among decision makers,” argued another. “I bet they were all men..”

Another found the voyeuristic advertisement particularly sexist as South Korea has recently seen a surge in incidents of “molka” (which translates to “secret camera”), an illegal practice in which creeps surreptitiously film women in public and post the vids online.

However, others thought that critics were crying over shilled milk.

“I don’t see anything wrong, this was the camera man imagination,” wrote one defender on YouTube, while another said, “This is so creative well done.”

Along with putting the ad out to pasture, Seoul Dairy Cooperative said they are “accepting this matter seriously and will conduct an internal review.”

The yogurt conglomerate also pledged to “take extra care to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future,” adding, “We bow our heads in apology.”

This isn’t the first time a commercial has caused a kerfuffle of late. In September, an incensed New Yorker tore down suggestive subway advertisements for the dating app OKCupid, after she deemed them inappropriate for children.

“We are accepting this matter seriously and will conduct an internal review, and take extra care to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. We bow our heads in apology,” the brand said in a milky mea culpa posted online.