Advertising bans won’t cure obesity

The advertising industry has a pivotal role to play in the fight against obesity.

Josh Faulks is chief executive of Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA)

Australia has an obesity problem, and we need to do something about it. One in four children are overweight or obese in this country. Adults are worse. We also suffer the ignominy of being ranked the ninth most overweight or obese country in the OECD.

But, if there is going to be government intervention around advertising, it needs to be balanced, proportionate and based on evidence. Banning all advertising of unhealthy food will not solve the problem and will smash our economy as we stare down the barrel of a recession.

There have been calls by some politicians for blanket bans of advertising of unhealthy food. Just to be clear, this would mean a ban on all advertising to children and adults of fast food, chocolate, ice cream, and – under some definitions – vegemite (high in salt) and yoghurt (high in sugar).

Experience around the world tells us that reducing obesity requires a holistic and multifaceted approach that involves government, business, parents and the community.

There are a number of factors that need to come together to have a material impact, including prevention, education, parental guidance, promotion of healthy eating habits, encouragement of physical activity and government regulation.

Global research so far shows there is little conclusive evidence that food advertising has a significant influence on children’s long-term diet and health. This scarcity of evidence has been confirmed by the World Health Organisation.

Of course, advertising influences behaviour and purchasing decisions, including buying food.

The real question is what is the size of that influence – based on evidence – and what should be the proportionate regulatory response.

The evidence base in favour of advertising bans is weak. Britain introduced some of world’s strictest restrictions on food advertising to children back in 2006. As a result, exposure for children to food ads was cut in half between 2008 and 2017. Yet obesity rates have remained nearly the same. Other jurisdictions like Quebec and Chile that introduced food advertising bans have seen child obesity rates increase.

Australia’s Food and Beverage Advertising Code is recognised as one of the most restrictive in the world. The code includes a ban on marketing occasional food or beverages to children (under 15 years of age). This applies to all advertising, across all media channels, at all times of the day.

And we know compliance is high, with nearly 100 per cent adherence to the decisions made by Ad Standards’ independent community panel.

So, if an effective ban already exists on marketing occasional food to children in Australia, the purpose of a broader advertising ban must be to also target adults.

In our liberal democracy, both sides of politics try to get the balance right between harm minimisation and the protection of individual freedoms. Finding that balance is not always easy, and we do not always get it right. ‘‘Proportionality’’ is a word thrown around often – is the proposed government response proportionate to the problem or potential harm done to the community?

In this debate, there are valid questions to raise about personal responsibility, and right of adults to choose what they want to eat or drink. Others will argue that it is about the right of business to responsibly advertise a legal product like food. Still others will point to the expected chilling effect on competition and innovation.

I don’t think the potential size of the economic impact of a ban of advertising of unhealthy food is really understood. In fact, some proponents claim there will be no financial impact.

Let’s take the example of the fast-food industry in Australia.

The purpose of a ban of advertising of unhealthy food is to reduce the amount of fast-food sold. That is likely to mean job losses across fast-food chains and some stores may close. That is the direct impact.

Fast-food operators use an enormous amount of beef, chicken and wheat from Australian farmers. The reduction in demand for their products would have a considerable flow-on effect on primary producers and jobs across regional communities.

Add in transportation, the impact on media owners and other associated industries, and you can see that the impact on the economy and employment will be widespread and substantial.

Given the expected shock to a struggling economy, the proposed regulatory response must be proportionate, evidence-based and effective in achieving the policy outcome. Advertising bans of unhealthy food are none of those.

The advertising industry has a pivotal role to play in the fight against obesity.

Partnering with the government, health organisations and the community, the industry can continue to implement responsible marketing practices that protect the vulnerable, particularly children, while using its influential platform to promote healthy eating and inspire healthier life choices.

Josh Faulks is chief executive of Australian Association of National Advertisers (AANA).