Memorandum by Abbott Mead Vickers\BBDO
(OB 90)
MARKETING FOOD TO CHILDREN
A. INTRODUCTION
1. Abbott Mead Vickers\BBDO (AMV) is the
UK's largest advertising agency, serving 40 clients both in the
UK and internationally. The agency is based in London and is part
of the BBDO international network of advertising agencies.
2. Our remit is to provide strategic and
creative above the line advertising for clients. We do not handle
sales promotion, direct marketing, media planning/buying, which
are purchased independently by our clients.
3. The agency works on a variety of advertising
assignments in a wide range of sectors including retail, telecommunications,
media, fast moving consumer goods, utility, public service, charity
and food and drink.
4. Since we were founded in 1977, our policy
has been to refuse tobacco industry business. We have been responsible
for the Government's tobacco control advertising campaign for
16 years and the road safety campaign for eight years.
B. RESPONSIBILITY
5. We take a responsible approach to advertising.
6. All our broadcast advertising adheres
to the strict statutory codes set out in the Broadcasting Act
1990 and the Communications Act 2003. The provisions are provided
by the Independent Television Commission Advertising Standards
Code and the Radio Authority Advertising and Sponsorship Code.
Broadcast ads are pre-vetted by the Broadcast Advertising Clearance
Centre (BACC) for TV and by the Radio Advertising Clearance Centre
(RACC) for radio. The broadcast advertising codes are enforced
by the Independent Television Commission (ITC).
7. All our non-broadcast advertising complies
with the self-regulatory Committee of Advertising Practice Code
of Advertising, Sales Promotion and Direct Marketing (CAP), which
is enforced by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
8. The mixture of statutory and self-regulatory
advertising codes in the UK is amongst the strictest in Europe
and contains special provisions for advertising to children and,
in particular, food advertising to children.
9. These provisions include prohibitions
on encouraging, children to over-consume, to eat or drink at or
near bedtime, to eat frequently throughout the day, or to replace
main meals with confectionery or snack foods.
10. We adhere responsibly and promptly to
the codes of advertising practice, understand their role and promote
their regular review.
11. We are members of the Institute of Practitioners
in Advertising (IPA) and sit on their council. We are members
of the Advertising Association (AA) and the Food Advertising Unit
(FAU), the centre for information, communication and research
into food advertising, particularly television advertising, to
children.
12. Social responsibility is an important
part of the agency's broad agenda. We are members of Business
in the Community (BTC) and last year opened "Big House",
an AMV-inspired homelessness initiative, in partnership with the
West London Mission. We participate in BTC cause-related marketing
education programmes for advertising agencies.
C. OBESITY
13. We recognise that obesity is a serious
and complex issue with multiple causes that require multiple solutions.
There is no single, quick fix to the problem.
14. According to government surveys, adults
and children are consuming fewer calories, yet obesity levels
are rising, which suggests that reduced energy expenditure is
a major contributor to growing obesity rates, caused by increasingly
sedentary lifestyles.
15. There are many stakeholders—including
parents, schools, government, the medical profession, food manufacturers,
advertising and media agencies, broadcasters, indeed society at
large—all of whom we believe have a role to play in constructive
and co-ordinated collaboration to tackle the problem.
16. AMV welcomes the opportunity to participate
in the debate on finding constructive solutions to the obesity
problem.
D. FOOD ADVERTISING
TO CHILDREN
17. Children's eating and exercise habits
are primarily influenced by their parents' attitudes, behaviours
and purchasing, which means parental engagement and involvement
is a key priority in the fight against obesity.
18. It is notoriously difficult to isolate
individual influences on behaviour. Most studies show there is
no link between advertising and child obesity. Some studies suggest
there may be a loose correlation. However, everyone agrees, including
the Strathclyde team, that there is no conclusive evidence to
show a direct causal link between advertising and child obesity
in the UK.
19. Evidence from abroad suggests there
is no correlation between the number of food advertisements, per
hour, of children's television programming and the level of childhood
overweight and obesity.
20. AMV takes the view that it is entirely
legitimate for the agency to promote safe, enjoyable food products
on behalf of our clients to children. We do so responsibly.
21. In advertising Wotsits and Pepsi cola,
we are promoting food and drink which can be enjoyed as part of
a balanced diet.
22. In the highly competitive and mature
UK markets for colas and extruded snacks, (where category growth
is low for cola and in decline for extruded snacks), the purpose
of advertising is to grow brand share, not to grow the category.
23. In 2002 the total cola market grew in
volume terms by 2.8%[1]
versus the previous year, with regular cola showing no growth
and diet colas growing by 7.1%. Over the same period extruded
snack volumes fell by 2.23%.[2]
E. FUTURE SOLUTIONS
24. If the issue of obesity is to be addressed
it will require a rebalancing of the "energy in, energy out"
equation. This will in turn require a co-ordinated and collaborative
response from all the key stakeholders, primarily parents, who
have the greatest influence and control over children's diets
and lifestyles.
25. Restrictions on advertising to children
will not solve the obesity problem because advertising is not
a key driver of quality of diet and lifestyle. Advertising bans
would also be impractical to enforce, given children's extensive
and widespread TV viewing beyond children's airtime and their
consumption of non-TV media.
26. We believe there is an immediate need
for a public health education campaign promoting a balanced and
healthy lifestyle, with a particular emphasis on diet and physical
activity. This programme will need to connect and co-ordinate
government policy and activity across health, food, sport, transport
and education.
27. Advertising agencies and their food
clients can be part of this initiative and embrace it in their
activities, by regularly reviewing food advertising codes in response
to new scientific evidence, promoting healthy choices and harnessing
the positive powder of advertising to educate and inform.
October 2003
1 Total UK cola market as measured by Canadean Ltd. Back
2
Total UK extruded snack market as measured by IRI Ltd. Back
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