Three years ago, major food companies, including Kelloggs, General Mills and Pepsi, promised that they would self-regulate and stop advertising unhealthy foods to children.
How are they doing? Well according to one study 72.5% of the foods advertised to children are of the poorest nutritional quality. Advertising for healthy foods is virtually invisible, accounting for only 1% of all food advertising to children. You can read about it here: http://www.childrennow.org/index.php/learn/reports_and_research/article/576
You can also read about it here: http://www.latimes.com/news/nation-and-world/la-na-kid-ads15-2009dec15,0,5833871.story
What I don't understand is why don't the boards of various produce buyers, such as apples, grapes, carrots, etc. band together and create their own advertising directed at children? Surely, someone growing apples has an interest in making his or her product appealing to children?
We have a fair bit of healthy food marketing going on up here--the new broccoli advert cracks me right up! I think it's the revivalist music in the background... We market milk to everyone, Ontario fruits and vegetables in season, eggs, and so on. I think I'm seeing less advertisements for frootloops but I don't watch all the channels, I might be missing it.
ReplyDeleteCan't say I miss that irritating leprechaun.
Barb