Kids’ sugar advertising ban is ‘choking the industry’

An extension on the ban of advertising high fat, salt or sugar (HFSS) food and drink products to children was an added burden to the “already onerous regulatory restrictions that are choking the industry”, a legal expert in the field has said.

The ban, extended on July 1 to cover all non-broadcast media – including social media – was a “sticking plaster” tactic that risked covering over the role of diet in the context of exercise and lifestyle, said Hilary Ross, executive partner and head of retail, food and hospitality at DWF.

Public Health England’s review

Ross also suggested the criteria for complying would change following Public Health England’s upcoming review of the nutrient profiling model.

“This will deliver another blow as companies are forced to revise – again – their product formulations and advertising strategies,” she said.

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