Cartoon characters fail to promote healthy foods

London, October 2: Some advertisements that feature popular cartoon characters to promote healthy food have come under fire after a consumer group has said all the advertising cartoon characters are failing to encourage healthy eating in children.

Researchers claim that of 19 cartoon characters identified in supermarkets by Which?, a product-testing and campaigning charity, no one promoted healthier foods.

Rice Krispies’ Snap, Crackle and Pop, Tony the Tiger, and Moo the Dairylea cow are among 19 cartoon favorites targeted by the consumer group for not promoting healthier eating in children and failing to tackle childhood obesity.

The Which? report warned parents against letting their children be led into unhealthy diets by the cartoon characters used for marketing strategies, and also called for the advertising codes to be strengthened significantly. The report also urged the Government to take significant steps to tackle these food promotions.

"Cartoons are great fun for kids. We definitely don’t want to see the end of popular characters like Tony the Tiger and the Honey Monster, but we do want to see them promoting healthier products,” said Clare Corbett, a Which? food campaigner.

After conducting survey of 19 cartoon characters, the report named Moo the Dairylea cow as worst offender in advertisers' promotions of food containing high levels of saturated fat and salt, while Kellogg's Tony the Tiger, famed for his "gr-r-reat!" catchphrase, was criticized for advertising food that contained one third sugar.

"Food companies must play their part in the fight against childhood obesity and diet-related disease by acting responsibly," Corbett said and added, "closing the cartoon loophole is a vital stop in tackling this complex issue. If the industry fails to act, the Government must step in."

Meanwhile, the report has infuriated the industry. A Dairylea spokesman said: "Which? is wrong to suggest children are getting fat because we carry Moo on Dairylea packs." A Kellogg's spokeswoman added, "These characters pre-date the childhood obesity problem we face. Banning characters such as Tony from advertising is not the magic bullet we all seek."

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said that after a review of all the evidence and extensive public consultation, the rules surrounding children’s food and soft drink advertising were significantly tightened last year. "These robust new rules are amongst the toughest in the world," the ASA spokesman said.

Unhappy with the report, the Food and Drink Federation said the industry's codes have put strict restrictions on marketing and were regulated independently.

Julian Hunt, spokesman for the Food and Drink Federation, said they really don’t understand why Which? wants to take all the fun out of food by banning fun characters, many of whom exist in markets for the last 80 years. Moreover, the recipes of several products which are targeted in the report have already been changed in recent years making them healthier for kids.