News

New food and beverage code for advertising to children

The Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA) today announced it is releasing a new Food and Beverages Code that will further reduce the opportunity for children to view advertisements promoting unhealthy food and drink products. The new provisions will apply from 1 November 2021.

The AANA says they will do this by harmonising and raising the definition of a child to under 15 years, which aligns with the definition in the Children’s Television standards and also introducing a tougher child audience threshold test.

“Food and non-alcoholic beverage companies will only be able to show advertisements for occasional foods when the proportion of children is 25% or less of the total audience. The threshold is currently 35% or less,” the AANA’s director policy and regulatory affairs, Megan McEwin, said.

“This requirement will apply to all media, both traditional and digital.Food and non-alcoholic beverage companies will only be able to show advertisements for occasional foods when the proportion of children is 25% or less of the total audience. The threshold is currently 35% or less.

“This requirement will apply to all media, both traditional and digital,” McEwin added.

The other major changes to the food & beverage self-regulatory system are:

• The creation of a single unified F&B Code incorporating the previous AANA Code and two other initiatives that covered Quick Service restaurants and packaged foods found in supermarkets and grocery stores;
• The definition of ‘occasional’ foods will now be determined by the application of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Nutrient Profiling Scoring Criterion.
• The new F&B Code will now apply to sponsorships; and
• The new code will incorporate a specific reference to a requirement that only healthier options be marketed to children, so that brand owners do not advertise occasional foods near places where children congregate.

The AANA Board said it is committed to regular reviews of the F&B Code to ensure that it keeps apace with any new evidence on the impact of advertising and also takes account of any new technologies or marketing techniques.

This process will include a full public consultation every five years.

The AANA will embark on an education campaign to communicate the changes to the marketing community.

Complaints under the new F&B Code will be adjudicated by the Ad Standards’ independent Community Panel.

ADVERTISEMENT

Get the latest media and marketing industry news (and views) direct to your inbox.

Sign up to the free Mumbrella newsletter now.

 

SUBSCRIBE

Sign up to our free daily update to get the latest in media and marketing.