Kraft Foods plans to cut ads for sugary junk foods to kids under 12. Ads on TV, radio and print media whose primary audience is kids ages 6 to 11 will be phased out.
This means that kids will be seeing fewer ads for such Kraft Foods products like Oreos, Chips Ahoy! cookies and Kool-Aid. The move comes just as the government has updated the recommended nutritional guidelines for Americans, and as criticism blaming food manufacturers for childhood obesity has been rising.
Kraft, the nation's largest food manufacturer, also plans to introduce a "Sensible Solution" program, in which products meeting certain nutrition criteria, such as being high in fiber or calcium, will be labeled as such and have their benefits flagged for consumers to see. The company has made previous steps to appeal to health-conscious consumers by offering some of their products in 100-calorie packs and making a move to quit advertising junk foods in schools.
Watchdog groups have applauded Kraft as an "industry leader" and hope other major players in the industry, like McDonald's and General Mills, will follow suit.
Other products that will no longer be advertised to preteens include several Post children's cereals and some varieties of Lunchables. The ads will be replaced with those featuring healthier foods, and Kraft still plans to market Sugar-Free Kool-Aid and 1/2 the Sugar Fruity Pebbles cereal to kids under 12.
The company's ads seen by parents or families, as well as those seen by children under 6 and over 12, remain unchanged.
CNN International January 13, 2005
It's mildly encouraging to read Kraft Foods -- manufacturer of processed lunch meats, sugared soft drinks and cookies -- plans to phase out advertising of its widely popular snack foods to kids under 12. So at the very least, your child will no longer be tempted by Oreo cookie and Kool-Aid commercials while they watch their Saturday morning cartoons (other food manufacturers will surely make up for it, though).
What's interesting, however, is what Kraft doesn't plan to stop doing:
The picture posted with this item shows how companies can build brand loyalty for their unhealthy products to kids anyway through subtle (and not-so-subtle) marketing.
Just think about it. About the time some kids may start feeling the effects of the childhood obesity epidemic in pre-puberty, they'll be bombarded by even more products they don't need.
Think about how hard it is for you to resist those junk food urges, and then realize that kids are generally far less disciplined than adults. And they've got constant marketing tactics coming at them from all directions (read Four Ways Junk Food Marketing Targets Your Kids to get an idea of what I mean).
So it's no wonder if you feel like you're fighting an uphill battle to keep your kids healthy. But please don't give up!
One of the more popular articles on my site is one I wrote about what parents can do to help their kids lose excess weight and build better self-esteem by setting a good example. Contributing editor Colleen Huber, a future naturopathic doctor and mother of a 4-year-old, also provides some excellent alternatives parents can use to satisfy their child's sweet tooth naturally.
Though they may fight you on it now, when your children are older they will thank you for the healthy food choices you make for them today. Whether the food choices are good or bad will set the tone for your child's entire life -- so don't give in to the junk food ads!
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