nosh nook #38 - wednesday, may 6, 2009

renewed calls for junk food ad ban on kids’ TV (link)
05.05.09 - australian food news - by daniel palmer

sometimes it seems like the whole world is against you. if you're junk food, that time is now. you're a plague upon our children. you're a pox on our houses. you're a thorn in our side & therefore must be eradicated post haste. won't somebody please think of the children?  if you're junk food, fighting the evil that your tastiness spreads has now become a pet project for politicians from new york to the u.k. to australia. you're bad. you're bad. really really bad.

according to daniel palmer, from the australian food news, down under, the coalition of food advertising to children (CFAC) "believe(s) that children who watch two hours of television per day see 18 hours per year of unhealthy advertisements for food like chips, burgers, confectionery and soft drinks." as a result, they're urging a ban on unhealthy food ads during the hours children watch TV. according to the president of the australian medical association, "(f)ood advertising influences what food children want, ask for, and eat." obviously, the answer is to ban advertising, as their parents are powerless when it comes to steering their children toward healthy diets.

how has the australian food industry reacted? they're playing nice & have even gone as far as to create a "responsible children’s marketing initiative," which says that they'll only advertise healthy food option to kids under twelve. once they're thirteen, they're fair game. last year, the australian green party introduced legislation aimed at curbing junk food advertising, but it didn't get enough support to pass. luckily, this year, they've reintroduced legislation. at the moment, it's poised to fail, but once the preventative health taskforce comes back in june with recommendations for australia's health policy, that could change...& not soon enough, because the little boy pictured in the article appears to be enjoying his donut more than should be allowed by law.