Latest news with #Faulks
Sky News AU
15-05-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
'Simply doesn't make sense': Nation's peak marketing body clashes with South Australia government over policy to ban junk food ads amid obesity crisis
South Australia is set to make an extraordinary move to ban all junk food advertisements from public transportation in a bid to scale back the state's rising obesity figures. The mandatory state policy is expected to kick in from July 1 and will prohibit an array of advertisements per the COAG Health Council's National interim guide to reduce children's exposure to unhealthy food and drink promotion. Businesses will soon be restricted from advertising images of lollies, dried fruits with added sugar, chocolocate, doughnuts, savoury or flavoured crisps, burgers, pizza, nachos, processed meats, kebabs and more. The government is also expected to ban promotions of meat pies and sausage rolls. "Australians are regularly exposed to unhealthy food and drink marketing which can influence nutrition knowledge, food preferences and consumption patterns, especially for children," the South Australia government wrote in a previous statement. "Unhealthy diets continue to be a leading public health risk." However, the nation's peak advertising body has clashed with the state on the drastic policy and has criticised the extensive list of restrictions. The CEO of Australian Association of National Advertisers, Josh Faulks said: "As it stands, this policy bans all processed meats, which means a simple ham salad sandwich can't be advertised.' "This simply doesn't make sense and the government should be making evidence-based decisions, not blanket bans that don't align with nutritional science.' The AANA further highlighted the economic impact the policy could have on businesses and claimed the sweeping changes would make it hard to advertise in South Australia. 'The Tasting Australia event can no longer show images of charcuterie boards or pastries in their advertising," said Faulks. 'Under this policy, businesses that have nothing to do with the food or beverage industry will find advertising in South Australia harder. "We fully support measures that encourage healthy eating, but this policy fails to distinguish between everyday foods and discretionary items, creating confusion and unfairly restricting brands that are doing the right thing from communicating with consumers." In place of the "blanket ban" the AANA is urging the state government to instead adopt the Food Standards Australia New Zealand nutrient profiling scoring criteria to determine which foods should be restricted. According to latest government figures about 63 per cent of adults and 35 per cent of children across South Australia are overweight or obese. The state policy has garnered the support of a number of organisations including Preventative Health SA and the Cancer Council. Health Minister Chris Picton took aim at AANA and accused the peak body of ''scaremongering'' the public. ''These lobbyists want to force the State Government to keep having junk food ads on our own buses amidst an obesity crisis,'' Mr Picton said. 'Advertising of unhealthy food and drinks has long been recognised as having a harmful impact on the diets of children. ''The policy applies to government-owned Adelaide Metro buses, trains and trams. It is not up to advertising industry lobbyists to tell us what can be displayed on our public transport assets.''
West Australian
07-05-2025
- Health
- West Australian
Australian Association of National Advertisers hits out at South Australian ban on unhealthy food and drink ads
Advertisements for ham salad sandwiches will soon be banned from public transportation in South Australia in a fresh push to roll back childhood and adult obesity. The ban, set to come into effect from July 1, prohibits a range of junk food items from being displayed on Adelaide's buses, trains and trams, including processed meats like ham. Chocolate, lollies, confectionary, desserts, ice creams, soft drinks and chips will all be banned from display alongside processed meats, with the measure designed to limit children's exposure to unhealthy food and drink advertising. But the Australian Association of National Advertisers is up in arms about what it calls a 'blanket ban'. 'As it stands, this policy bans all processed meats, which means a simple ham salad sandwich can't be advertised.' AANA CEO Josh Faulks said. 'This simply doesn't make sense and the government should be making evidence-based decisions, not blanket bans that don't align with nutritional science.' The peak body warns charities and businesses could be negatively impacted by the ban. 'The policy bans all advertising showing those banned food or drink items. 'For example, an ad celebrating the anniversary of a children's charity which depicts a child with a birthday cake would be banned,' Mr Faulks said. 'The Tasting Australia event can no longer show images of charcuterie boards or pastries in their advertising. 'Under this policy, businesses that have nothing to do with the food or beverage industry will find advertising in South Australia harder.' The AANA has called for a 'clearer and more practical approach'. NewsWire has written to the AANA for clarity on what that might mean. If the ban comes into effect, the AANA wants the government to adopt what it calls a 'science-based approach' by using nutrient profiling scoring criteria to determine which foods should be restricted. Some 63 per cent of adults and 35 per cent of children across South Australia are overweight or obese, government figures show. Health Minister Chris Picton previously said the ban was a 'sensible step' to a 'healthier South Australia'. 'Food habits and relationships established early in life have a lasting impact on food habits and health outcomes of adults,' he said in January. 'The rising rates of obesity are concerning, which is why we have developed an evidence-based policy to restrict the advertising of unhealthy food and drinks on state government buses and trams. 'This policy recognises that the cumulative exposure of unhealthy food and drink advertising influences a child's food preferences and intake and the associated 'pester power' children use to persuade parents.' Cancer Council SA prevention and advocacy manager Christine Morris said unhealthy food and drink items were also linked to cancer. 'We know that minimising unhealthy food and drink advertising can lead to better health outcomes for everyone,' she said. 'Our research shows that forming the foundations of positive nutrition preferences in children is a big step in overall cancer prevention. 'We heartily welcome this ban as a positive move towards a healthier community.'
