Global Food And Beverage Companies In The GCC Renew And Strengthen Their Voluntary Pledge To Restrict Marketing To Children

International food and drink companies based in the GCC, General Mills, Kellogg Company, Mars, Mondelz International, Nestl Middle East, PepsiCo, The Coca-Cola Company and Unilever, have actually released a boosted variation of their existing GCC Pledge on Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children.

At first signed in 2010, the GCC Pledge is a voluntary dedication by the signatory business to carry out accountable food and drink marketing to kids in reflection of their dedication to enhance nutrition and to promote much healthier way of lives. As per the dedication all getting involved companies do not to direct any marketing interaction to kids below 12 years old, except for items that satisfy certain nutritional criteria based on sound clinical proof.
The fortifying of this promise comes as another advance in self-regulation by these GCC based business in dealing with Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs). All 8 companies are members of the International Food and Beverage Alliance (IFBA), a not-for-profit organisation in special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Committee (ECOSOC).

This enhanced promise entails applying a set of harmonized nutrition criteria amongst the IFBA member companies based in the GCC, for the unique function of specifying better-for-you choices in the context of food and drink advertising to kids under twelve and specifically for the item categories covered. These criteria are in line with the very same dedication made in Europe (http://www.eu-pledge.eu/content/eu-pledge-nutrition-criteria).

"As leading companies in the food and drink industry, we acknowledge the magnitude of the difficulty to attend to Non-Communicable Diseases in the GCC and we are contributing through this improved promise to one aspect of the solution. More industry voluntary measures are being prepared for the near future," stated an industry representative in the GCC.

In addition, the companies will continue to not promote products in primary schools, except where specifically asked for by, or agreed with, the school administration for educational purposes, and just with products that satisfy the requirements. All IFBA member companies based in the GCC have likewise voluntarily embraced specific corporate policies to ensure that they are certified with these commitments.

Showing a conditioning of the requirements given that its preliminary execution in 2010, the promise now covers marketing items across a wide variety of platforms including websites, TELEVISION and print, which will encompass include radio, cinema, DVD/CD-ROM, direct marketing, product positioning in children's media channels, interactive video games, mobile and SMS marketing efficient 31st December, 2016. Compliance with the pledge is examined by an independent agency.

As leaders in their market, signatories of the promise are looking at broadening the scope of this voluntary dedication to consist of more local companies in the future. Similar initiatives have been embraced in the European Union, the United States, Singapore, and Australia and have actually shown effective.
Responsible Marketing of Food & Beverages to Children is one of 4 commitments that IFBA member business have made worldwide. The other dedications are: driving forward Product Formulation and Innovation, carrying out Clear Nutrition Labelling, and Promoting Healthy Diets and Lifestyles. These commitments show the drive by these business to support the World Health Organisation's Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseaes 2013-2020 and to play a role in addressing worldwide health challenges.