ENACT STRATEGY: Food Marketing
Restrict the ability of food and beverage companies to market unhealthy food
We are all impacted by our food environments: what’s sold and how it’s promoted influences what we eat and drink on a daily basis. Food and beverage companies spend billions of dollars every year marketing unhealthy products. Worse, they disproportionately target children—whose developmental stage prevents them from recognizing that something is being intentionally promoted—as well as low-income neighborhoods and communities of color—where healthy products are often either unaffordable or unavailable. When the places where people live, work, and play are saturated with messages encouraging them to eat and drink unhealthy things, they do not have an equal chance at living healthy lives. Solutions must address the “Four Ps” that make up the “marketing mix:” the product – what is sold; the place—where it is sold; the promotion—how it is advertised; and the price—how much it costs. While much of the required policy change must take place at the federal level, there are a number of key strategies that can be implemented locally: these strategies enhance healthy food marketing while restricting harmful practices.
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Policies to Change the Product: What is Sold?
• set calorie limits for “kids’ meals” based on federal nutritional guidelines
• mandate that food sold as a “complete meal” meet specific nutritional standards
• ban unhealthy products (e.g. trans fats)*
Agreements and Policies to Change the Place: Where is it Sold?
• have stores keep some check-out aisles free of gum, candy, etc.**
• have stores shelve high sugar cereals (and similar products) above children’s eye level**
• have stores keep candy behind the counter, so that customers must ask to buy it **
• limit give drive-through zoning permits to restaurants selling healthy foods*
• use land use law to limit the number and location of fast food restaurants*
• impose a moratorium on the opening of new fast food restaurants*
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Agreements and Policies to Change the Promotion: How is it Advertised?
• increase colorful displays promoting fruits, vegetables and healthy eating programs**
• have stores not display in-store advertising directed at children**
• ban all billboards and/or advertising on public transportation
• require chain restaurants to label their menus with calorie counts*
• restrict cartoon character tie-ins and celebrity endorsements to healthy products
• limit promotional toy giveaways to healthy products
- Policies to Change the Price: How Much does it Cost?
• levy fees for companies selling unhealthy products
• increase taxes on the sale of unhealthy products
• subsidize people, restaurants, and stores that sell healthy products
* = for more information and resources, also see Limit Fast Food strategy
** = for more information and resources, also see Store Displays strategy
Marketing to Children Overview
This fact-sheet, which is not limited to food, was created by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC). CCFC also created this food-specific fact-sheet.
Food Marketing to Children
Created by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, this fact-sheet provides important information about food marketing to children and outlines recommendations for action.
Self-Regulatory Program for Children’s Advertising
The Children’s Advertising Regulatory Unit (CARU) was established in 1974 to “promote responsible children’s advertising.” CARU’s Self-Regulatory Program for Children’s Advertising is entirely voluntary, and its food industry guidelines are significantly less restrictive than those recommended by other groups. CARU has been included on ENACT because it is a key player in children’s marketing, and not as an endorsement of its approach.
Good Neighbor Program: San Francisco, CA
Literacy for Environmental Justice established the Good Neighbor Program, which incentivized local stores to limit unhealthy in-store advertising, while also increasing fruits and vegetables and decreasing alcohol and tobacco. In 2007, Good Neighbor was adopted as a statewide model.
Healthy Eating by Design: Somerville, MA
The Somerville Healthy Eating by Design Partnership used creative strategies to promote their local farmer’s market as a healthy and affordable source of fresh fruits and vegetables for all members of their diverse community. As a result, more families now shop at the farmer’s market (and it contributes positively to the neighborhood economy!).
Junk Food Generation
This campaign, kicked off in 2008 by Consumers International, seeks to end the marketing of unhealthy foods to children under 16. The campaign is asking the World Health Organization to develop an enforceable code of conduct to regulate the food and beverage industry.
Fighting Junk Food Marketing – A Toolkit for Advocates
Berkeley Media Studies Group (BMSG) “developed this toolkit to help community advocates understand how food marketing affects kids’ health and what they can do about it at the local level.” In addition to background information and solutions to the problem, this toolkit includes engaging activities and concrete resources to use in organizing your community to take action.
Roadmap to Improving Food and Physical Activity Environments—Marketing and Advertising
This chapter of the Healthy Eating, Active Communities (HEAC) Roadmap was authored by Berkeley Media Studies Group (BMSG). First, it provides an introduction to marketing and advertising, and then it lays out a step-by-step process that you can use to assess your local environment, select solutions, and take action.
Guidelines for Responsible Food Marketing to Children
Developed by Center for Science in the Public Interest, these Guidelines are intended for parents, school officials, legislators, and community/health organizations. In addition to more general recommendations, they include specific nutritional standards that should guide the marketing practices of the food and beverage industry. Click here for How to Use the Guidelines.
Regulating “Junk Food Marketing” Aimed at Children
The 1st Amendment—“freedom of speech”—protects many forms of commercial advertising. It is therefore important to consider whether policies for restricting the marketing of unhealthy foods would be upheld in court, should legal challenges arise. Public Health Law and Policy (PHLP) created this one-page document. It lists a wide range of policy options and classifies them according to the likelihood that they would be considered constitutional.
Soft Drink Taxes – A Policy Brief
This brief, produced by the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, considers soft drink taxes as a potential approach to reducing soda consumption and funding prevention efforts. It includes: a summary of existing research, policy recommendations, and an outline of the arguments in favor and against such taxes.
Revenue Calculator for Soft Drink Taxes (Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity)
This calculator produces expected revenue by allowing the user to list the tax per ounce and the type of beverages to be taxed.
Boston Artificial Trans Fat Ban
This ban, which went into effect in September 2008, prohibits trans fat in all products sold in food service establishments, vending machines, and mobile food vendors.
California Resolution: Relative to Food Marketing and Advertising Directed to Children.
This California Senate Resolution, passed in 2004, made requests to both the federal government and the food and beverage industry. Although in no way binding, this Resolution was important in demonstrating California’s commitment to the issue. (This Resolution can be customized for local use.)
Calorie Labeling Amendment
This New York City health code requires food service establishments that sell standardized food products to prominently display information about the calorie content of each menu item.
Regulating Chain Restaurant Giveaways with Children’s Meals
Public Health Law & Policy (PHLP) developed the Model California Ordinance Regulating Chain Restaurant Giveaways with Children's Meals to assist California municipalities that want to encourage chain restaurants to provide healthier food and beverage options for children.
Scenic Missouri Model Billboard Ordinance
This model ordinance is based on one passed in Missouri in 1998.
Official Zoning Ordinance
This ordinance, passed by the Detroit City Council, establishes a minimum distance between certain carry-out, fast-food, and drive-in restaurants to the nearest point of an elementary, junior high, or senior high school site.
Los Angeles Fast Food Moratorium
This ordinance created a one-year moratorium on new fast food restaurants in South and Southeast Los Angeles.
in the ENACT Local Policy Database
Berkeley Media Studies Group
Berkeley Media Studies Group (BMSG) uses the power of the media to advance healthy public policy. BMSG has conducted significant research on the food and beverage industry’s marketing practices. Using this research, BMSG has created several briefs, reports, and toolkits.
Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood
Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (CCFC) is a national coalition dedicated to reclaiming childhood from corporate marketers. CCFC has focused heavily on food marketing.
National Policy and Legal Analysis Network to Prevent Childhood Obesity
The National Policy & Legal Analysis Network to Prevent Childhood Obesity (NPLAN) has three focus areas, one of which is food and beverage marketing to children and youth. NPLAN provides legal research, model policies, fact sheets, toolkits, training and technical assistance. It is a project of Public Health Law and Policy.
Center for Science in the Public Interest
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) is a strong advocate for nutrition and health, food safety, alcohol policy, and sound science. Among other things, CSPI seeks to counter industry’s powerful influence on public opinion and public policies.
Nutrition and Marketing Ratings of Children’s Cereals
This report by the Rudd Center offers new insights into the nutrition profile of children’s cereals and reveals how food companies are reaching kids to promote these products. The study also offers a number of recommendations for protecting children from aggressive food marketing, including strengthening the definition of “children’s media”.
Food Marketing to Children and Youth: Threat or Opportunity?
This landmark report, published in 2005 by the Institute of Medicine, reached the conclusion that food and beverage marketing practices geared to children and youth are out of balance with healthful diets, and that they contribute to an environment that puts their health at risk.
Food and Beverage Marketing to Children and Adolescents: What Changes are Needed to Promote Healthy Eating Habits?
This brief summarizes the latest research about the ubiquity of food and beverage marketing targeting youth, and how such marketing impacts their dietary patterns and health.
Out of Balance: Marketing of Soda, Candy, Snacks, and Fast Food Drowns Out Healthful Messages
In this paper, Consumers Union uses recently released data to highlight one of the key factors contributing to this public health crisis: the unending barrage of food, beverage, and fast food advertising in the United States.
Kids’ Meals: Obesity on the Menu
This report, authored by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, evaluated the nutritional content of kids’ meals at the most popular chain restaurants in the United States. It found that 93% of kids’ meals are high in calories, 45% are high in fat, and 86% are high in sodium.
The Context for Choice: Health Implications of Targeted Food and Beverage Marketing to African Americans
The authors reviewed 20 studies comparing food and beverage marketing practices directed at African Americans vs. Whites. They found that African Americans were consistently exposed to food promotion and distribution patterns with relatively greater potential adverse health effects than are Whites.
Groer. S.A., & Kumanyika, S.K. The Context for Choice: Health Implications of Targeted Food and Beverage Marketing to African Americans. Am J Public Health. 2008 September; 98(9), 1616-1629.
