ASEAN Launches Guidelines on Food Marketing to Protect Future Generation

On March 18, 2024, ASEAN Health Ministries officially launched ASEAN Minimum Standards and Guidelines on Actions to Protect Children from the Harmful Impact of Marketing of Food and Non-alcoholic Beverages (hereafter as the Guidelines) during a virtual meeting. The Guidelines mainly proposed 12 recommendations for regulating the marketing of food and non-alcoholic beverages, aiming to protect the future generation among ASEAN members.

Background 

In Southeast Asia, unhealthy dietary choices including sugary, salty, and fatty foods are widely promoted through pervasive advertisements. Over 12 million children under 5 already suffer from overweight or obesity in the region, with this number expected to rise. Unhealthy weight gain increases the risk of obesity-related diseases in adulthood. To address this, with the support from United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization (WHO) and Alive & Thrive (A&T), ASEAN Member States developed the Guidelines to protect children from the harmful impact of the marketing of unhealthy food and beverages. To be more specific, these measures aim to limit the influence of such marketing and create healthier environments for children across the region. 

Current regulatory landscape 

Several ASEAN Member States have already implemented restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy food to children in specific settings or media. Despite there has been some progresses in regulating marketing practices, no ASEAN member has yet adopted a comprehensive approach with legally binding measures. Instead, most members choose voluntary industry-led food marketing codes. However, evidence suggests that government-led mandatory actions are more effective in reducing children's exposure to unhealthy food marketing, whereas industry-led codes are often ineffective.

The 12 Regulatory Recommendations

1. Introduce food marketing policies as part of a broad whole-of-systems approach for addressing childhood overweight.

Unhealthy food marketing is a significant factor in shaping food norms against it, but it is just one of many interconnected drivers of overweight. While eliminating it alone won't solve the problem, it is an essential first step. Addressing childhood overweight requires comprehensive action across the food system, including improvements in maternal and infant nutrition, food environments, nutrition literacy, school food standards, and physical activity. In Chile and the UK, government policies, such as taxes on sugary drinks, restrictions on marketing, and front-of-pack labeling, were implemented as part of broader strategies to combat obesity.

2. Adopt mandatory government legislation. 

Government-led mandatory restrictions on unhealthy food marketing have consistently proven more effective than voluntary approaches. Examples from Australia, Canada, Germany, Spain, and the US demonstrate the limited impact of voluntary codes. Singapore, South Korea, and Chile have successfully implemented mandatory marketing restrictions through legislation to ensure accountability, enforcement, comprehensiveness, a level playing field, regional cooperation, and sustainability, resulting in significant reductions in unhealthy food advertising.

3. Implement one comprehensive law that covers the full extent of food marketing to which children are exposed.

Comprehensive laws are effective in addressing unhealthy food marketing. Rather than tackling settings and media separately, a unified approach covering various aspects yields greater impact. Implementing a comprehensive law can maximize political momentum and avoids incremental actions.

4. Set "reduction in exposure and power of unhealthy food marketing to children" as a short-term policy objective.

Clear and measurable policy objectives are essential for effective policy design in addressing unhealthy food marketing. Short-term objectives focus on reducing children's exposure to and the persuasive power of marketing. Medium-term objectives shall target reducing the purchase and consumption of unhealthy foods. Long-term objectives shall align with broader strategic goals, such as reducing childhood overweight prevalence.

5. Define children as up to 18 years of age.

Children up to 18 years should be protected from unhealthy food marketing. This age range aligns with child protection laws in most ASEAN Member States. Unhealthy food marketing influences both younger and older children, and addressing it helps combat unhealthy diets and weight gain. However, please note that defining children is relevant for content-based and direct marketing restrictions, but not for settings, time, or media-based regulations.

6. Use a broad definition of marketing that will cover the wide breadth of marketing strategies.

Marketing is any form of commercial communication that promotes products, brands, or services directly or indirectly. It includes advertising, sponsorship, direct marketing, product placement, and branding, as well as the advertising of corporate social responsibility initiatives.

7. Define marketing to children as all marketing that children are exposed to, regardless of the intended audience.

To protect children from harmful food marketing, the definition of marketing to children should cover all unhealthy food marketing they are exposed to, regardless of the intended audience or whether it is "directed to children." This is because children and adults sometimes share the same spaces and exposure times, making it difficult to define what is specifically "directed to children."

Subjective interpretations weaken legislation and can be legally challenged. For example, Chile implemented a law restricting food advertising during "child-targeted" television programs, but exposure was only reduced, not eliminated. Updating the legislation with time-based restrictions proved more effective.

8. Adopt or adapt an evidence-based food classification system that categorizes food, drinks and master brands (logos) as "permitted" or "not permitted" for marketing.

To protect children from unhealthy food marketing, a clear and objective classification system should be used. ASEAN Member States are suggested by the Guidelines to adopt evidence-based models like the WHO Nutrient Profile Models. Certain food categories, such as chocolate and confectionery, should be prohibited regardless of their nutrient content. Marketing of products with trans-fatty acids, alcohol, or non-nutritive sweeteners should be banned. In addition, the master brands associated with unhealthy foods should not be allowed in food marketing to children.

9. Regulate all unhealthy food marketing using a combination of provisions that describe the settings, times, media, and content to which the restrictions apply.

Governments should adopt a comprehensive approach to regulating unhealthy food marketing for children, prioritizing settings and media based on political feasibility and potential influence, and implementing clear and enforceable regulations across various design options. Regulatory design options include settings-based bans (e.g., in schools and public spaces), time-based restrictions (e.g., during peak child viewing hours), media-based bans (e.g., on online digital platforms), and content-based bans (e.g., on child-directed marketing).

10. Ensure governance systems steer the legislative process. 

Governments should establish a comprehensive legal framework for regulating unhealthy food marketing to children, with a clear lead agency coordinating the implementation, mitigating legal challenges, and engaging relevant stakeholders in the legislative process.

11. Prevent and manage potential conflicts of interest in legislative development, implementation, monitoring and enforcement.

Governments should prevent conflicts of interest in food marketing regulations by establishing clear processes, consulting with stakeholders without direct engagement with those with potential conflicts, obtaining evidence from unbiased sources, and implementing the regulations with defined roles, independent monitoring, and conflict management tools.

12. Monitor and enforce legislation to ensure compliance and to measure impact.

Governments should monitor food marketing regulations for compliance and effectiveness, using defined indicators, enforcement mechanisms, and independent evaluation systems to identify and address loopholes and ensure the legislation meets its objectives.