Marketing unhealthy food to children in Asia Pacific - Consumers ...

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• Interactive websites – There is evidence to showincreasing use of the Internet by multinationalcompanies in Asia Pacific to promote unhealthyproducts. (This is of particular concern because it is anarea where parents often find it difficult to regulatewhat their children are viewing). These websites areoften related to online children’s clubs. Increasedconsumption is encouraged, for example, throughpromotions or placing codes on packaging that can beused to collect free gifts.• Cartoons and celebrities – Companies are using arange of tried and tested traditional marketingtechniques like cartoon characters (both brand ownedand licensed) and celebrities to appeal to children. InAsia Pacific companies use national celebrities andcartoon characters, as well as global stars or characters.Children in poorer countries may be more vulnerable toappeals from those characters that suggest a Westernlifestyle.The need for an international codeThe evidence contained in this report shows thatcompanies across the region are using marketingtechniques to promote unhealthy food to children.However, there is little consistency in terms of theinformation they provide to consumers with companiesproviding basic nutritional advice in some countries, butnot in others.Companies are also attracting attention for making newcommitments in the US and the EU, whilst not evenresponding to enquiries from consumer organisations inthe Asia Pacific region.National governments, aware of the growth of obesityrelateddiseases are, in some countries, beginning to takeaction. However, to date, the responses are inadequate.CI believes that the WHO has a responsibility to showleadership in this area and produce policies that can beeasily and swiftly implemented by national governments,as well as providing a benchmark for responsible foodindustry practice.What we have discoveredThe six multinational companies, their policies andmarketing techniques promoting unhealthy foodsto kidsCoca-ColaInformation gathered in Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia,Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines and ThailandWhat’s in the products?Classic Coca-Cola is high in sugar (between10g and 11g per 100 ml bottle which isequivalent to almost 9 teaspoons of sugar).Fanta is even higher in sugar (between 11.7gand 15.2g per 100ml bottle.)These results focus on classic Coca-Cola and Fanta, whichare globally recognised brands.Policy on marketing to children and tacklingobesity/nutritionCI members in Fiji, Hong Kong, Nepal, Philippines andThailand did not receive responses to requests forinformation on policies relating to marketing to childrenand obesity from Coca-Cola.GlobalIn May 2008, the International Council of BeveragesAssociations announced a set of Guidelines on Marketingto Children, which Coca-Cola (as a member) have signedup to and endorsed. This means that with the exceptionof water, fruit juices and dairy-based drinks, Coca-Colawill not advertise its beverages where children under 12years old make up over 50% of the audience in mediaincluding TV, radio, print or digital media or cinema(including product placement). These are globalguidelines and cover all countries where Coca-Cola ismarketed. Other marketing practices involving childrenunder 12, such as the use of licensed characters,sponsorship and communications in schools will bereviewed by the end of 2009.ThailandAlthough this announcement was not provided directly tothe CI member in Thailand, in May 2008, Coca-Cola,Kellogg’s, Nestlé and PepsiCo were among a group ofcompanies to announce a “Thai pledge” 10 . Under this actof self-regulation, these companies will stopadvertisements of food and beverages to children under12 years old by the end of 2008. They would also stopcommercial activities in schools unless invited for thepurpose of disseminating educational information, whichleaves them a window of opportunity to continuemarketing their products. The pledge was not wellpublicised in the local press.14 The Junk Food Trap
IndiaCoca-Cola in India informed CERC (Consumer Educationand Research Society) that the company “markets itsproducts responsibly and does not market soft drinks tochildren under the age of 12.” They added that for morethan 50 years they have had a policy not to advertise“sparkling” soft drinks on TV programmes that targetchildren under 12. At the same time, they indicated intheir response that they respect classrooms as a“commercial-free zone” and their support to schools islimited to activities that promote physical activity,academic achievement and education about balancednutrition and healthy habits.In terms of obesity, Coca-Cola pointed out that “No foodor beverage is responsible for obesity. Obesity is acomplex problem that has no easy answers and we allneed to work together to find workable solutions to thiscomplex problem.” As part of their role in addressingobesity they listed the following as their concrete actions:• Providing variety in the broad portfolio of our beverageproducts.• Supporting healthy and active lifestyles for all people,especially our young people through youthdevelopment and education programmes.• Respecting the rights of parents, teachers and schoolofficials to make choices for children.• Working with representatives of government, NGOsand the public health community to ensure that thediscussion about obesity remains grounded in fact andscientific evidence.• Continuing to work together with all stakeholders.MalaysiaF&N Coca-Cola in Malaysia responded to FOMCA, the CImember in Malaysia, saying that in general Coca-Coladoes not specifically aim products at children althoughthey recognise that children do consume their productsunder parental supervision. F&N stands for Fraser &Neave, the last names of the business partners thatestablished the company, which holds the Coca-Colabottling franchise for Singapore and Malaysia.In terms of marketing to children, F&N Coca-Colaprovides nutritional information on packaging andrespects school policies on beverages. It has an ActiveLifestyle programme with which they work through100Plus, an isotonic drink, with the Ministry of Educationto promote sport in schools.Marketing tactics we discoveredSponsorship of children’s sports activitiesin schoolsCoca-Cola has been the main sponsor of the Coke Gamesin Fiji for the last 25 years. This is an athletics competitionfor 120 secondary schools in Fiji. There is, we say, widespreadbranding of the event using the high sugar ‘classic’Coca-Cola brand. This can give children contradictorymessages about what constitutes a healthy lifestyle.Television advertisingCoca-Cola regularly advertises on mainstream televisionmedia channels in Hong Kong. During the monitoringperiod, Coca-Cola adverts were found for 2008 Olympicsrelatedfood product promotions at times children arewatching TV, such as Sunday early afternoons.Coca-Cola uses celebrities, such as the Bollywood actorHrithik Roshan, in TV advertising in India and Nepal.Hrithik Roshan is a young male star who is very popularwith teenagers. In the commercial shown in Nepal,Hrithik was featured saying “Party starts and ends withCoke!” Coke promotions and advertisements in Nepalare mostly developed in India.In Thailand, Coca-Cola uses cartoon characters in TVadvertising that appeals to children. In the latestcommercial for Fanta, a young female cartoon characterwas shown as a cool and able musician because shedrinks Fanta. In contrast, young male cartoon charactersstruggled to play music in spite of trying so hard;apparently because they were not drinking Fanta.With regards to obesity, F&N Coca-Cola “believes inoffering choices and we provide a wide variety ofbeverages (including many low calorie and no-calorieoptions) as well as portion sizes to meet consumers needsfor fun, refreshment, nutrition and hydration for alllifestyles”.Fanta TV advert in ThailandEvidence for action15
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Page 5: ContentsExecutive summary _________
Page 8 and 9: We believe that the substantial bod
Page 10 and 11: INTRODUCTIONThe food trapThe obesit
Page 12 and 13: When is a product ‘high in fat, s
Page 16: Interactive websitesCoca-Cola has a
Page 19 and 20: In school marketingKFC in Malaysia
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Page 23 and 24: TV advertisingIn the Philippines, N
Page 25 and 26: Overview ofgovernment policiesAll g
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Page 30 and 31: APPENDIXAbout the reportOur researc
Page 32: Endnotes1International Journal of P

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