Guidance Note on Food and Beverage Advertising Targeted at Children

Download a PDF version of this guidance note here: Guidance Note on Food and Beverage Advertising Targeted at Children

Note that the Food and Beverage Advertising Code will be effective for all new advertising from 1 August 2024, and for all advertising from 1 November 2024.

Objective

This Guidance Note is to assist advertisers, agencies, media companies and the community with the interpretation of the Food and Beverage Advertising Code (the Code) and the rules for advertising Food or Beverage Products and Occasional Food or Beverage Products to Children.

The guidance is based on the Code and will be updated from time to time to reflect relevant decisions from the ASA Complaints and Appeal Boards.

Occasional Food or Beverage Advertisements

Occasional Food or Beverage Advertisements (products and sponsorships) have been covered by the ASA Codes for some time. The Food and Beverage Advertising Code’s definition of Food or Beverage Products now also includes brand advertising.

Rule 1(b) of the Code states that Occasional Food or Beverage Advertisements must not target Children.

The Code includes definitions of Occasional Food or Beverage Products and Occasional Food or Beverage Advertisements. It also has detailed guidance on advertising targeting Children.

The definition of Occasional Food or Beverage Advertisement includes brands, and, in most cases, it is likely to be clear whether a brand is covered by this definition.

If an advertiser does not consider their brand is covered, and a complaint is received, the Complaints Board will take the following matters into account:

• the likely consumer takeout of the products most associated with the brand
• whether the brand is a product or a company name or corporate branding
• if needed, evidence from the brand on its product range and the volume of products classified as Occasional Food or Beverage Products
• the intent of the advertising – is its primary purpose to promote Occasional Food or Beverage Products or something else?

To assist with the application of the Code, see the following examples. They are for illustration purposes only and are provided to assist parties in understanding their obligations.

The examples do not constitute a definitive set of possible scenarios and have not been tested through the ASA Complaints Board process.

Advertising targeted at Children and additional media placement guidance

The guidance on advertising targeted at Children in the Code sets out the three aspects – product (and brand), content and placement, the combination of which are assessed to determine whether an Occasional Food or Beverage Advertisement is targeted at Children.

Digital placement, including via social media and video-sharing platforms, is a primary tool for media placement. The technology and data available from platforms mean advertisers have options for targeting audiences at scale.

When promoting Occasional Food or Beverage Products, advertisements must not target Children. There are a range of digital tools to help manage this and the tools allow advertisers to demonstrate they have taken steps to limit Children’s exposure to the ads.

To support the restrictions set out in the Code:

• No age-restricted ads should appear in media obviously targeted at an audience under 16 years.
• No age-restricted ads should be placed in media where more than 25% of the expected average audience is under 16 years or within the distance restrictions set out in the Codes (for example, a 300 m sightline to the main school entrance).
• If advertisements are targeted using data held by the advertiser or third-party data, targeting measures must be used to minimise the likelihood of the ads being seen by Children.

When advertising across platforms that have content with wide audience appeal, to avoid targeting Children, advertisers can take precautions that could include:

• using inclusion lists to direct ads to content more appropriate for an adult audience
• using exclusion lists to avoid media categories intended for Children
• actively including subsections of large news sites primarily for the intended audience (finance, motoring) and excluding subsections with content likely to appeal to Children (Children’s cartoons and quizzes)
• using relevant and recent audience data
• being careful with media placement that is not able to provide audience data
• excluding keywords and topics likely to be popular with Children.

Occasional Food or Beverage Sponsorship Advertising

Sponsorship advertising featuring Occasional Food or Beverage Products has been covered by the Children and Young People’s Advertising Code since 2017.

Principle 3 in the Food and Beverage Advertising Code sets out the rules relating to Sponsorship advertising. Rule 3(a) confirms that Occasional Food or Beverage Sponsorship Advertisements targeted at Children are not permitted unless they comply with the following guidelines.

These advertisements:

• must not include any reference to the brand’s Occasional Food or Beverage Products
• must demonstrate a clear sponsorship association between the brand and the sponsored party
• must be primarily about the sponsored party.

Advertisers must not, as part of Sponsorship advertising, give Occasional Food or Beverage Products to Children or vouchers that can be used by Children for Occasional Food or Beverage Products. This does not prevent the advertiser from offering awards or prizes that are not Occasional Food or Beverage Products.

The following examples have been included for illustration purposes only and are provided to assist parties in understanding their obligations. The examples do not constitute a definitive set of possible scenarios and have not been tested through the ASA Complaints Board process.