Children's Food Campaign wins fight against product placement of junk food

Children's food campaigners today declared victory in their campaign to stop the Government introducing product placement of junk food in UK-made television programmes. 

However, they warned that there were still serious concerns about the use of any form of paid-for product placement, and that any future government re-introducing product placement of junk food would meet the same level of resistance that forced Ben Bradshaw to back down this time.

Campaign Co-coordinator Jackie Schneider said:   “It is good news that the massive pressure from health, consumer and children's groups has forced Ben Bradshaw to drop plans to allow the product placement of junk food.

She continued: “We are very uncomfortable that plans to allow some product placement will still go ahead.  This creates the possibility that a future government could still allow placement of junk food through the back.  The political parties should be warned that any attempt to reintroduce product placement of junk food in the future will be met by the same massive level of opposition that won this argument.”

ENDS

For further information please contact Jackie Schneider, Chistine Haigh or Richard Watts on 0203 5596 777

Notes to editors:

1. Those opposing product placement include the Church of England, Which?, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, Compass, the Royal College of Physicians, Action on Allergy; Association of Teachers and Lecturers; Baby Milk Action; British Dental Association; British Dental Health Foundation; British Medical Association; Child Growth Foundation; Children's Food Campaign; Coeliac UK; Consumer Focus; Diabetes UK; The Food Commission; the Food for Life Partnership; HUSH: the UK Ecoli Support Group; Hyperactive Children's Support Group; Erik Millstone, Professor of Science Policy, University of Sussex;  National Heart Forum; National Obesity Forum; National Union of Teachers; National Children's Bureau; Northern Ireland Chest Heart and Stroke; Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health; tfX; Weight Concern.
2. The Children's Food Campaign works to improve children's health and well-being through better food - and food teaching - in schools, and protecting children from junk food marketing.  We are supported by over 300 national and local organisations and 12,000 members of the public.  The Children's Food Campaign is coordinated by Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming and is funded by the British Heart Foundation.  For more details see https://www.sustainweb.org/childrensfoodcampaign/ 
3. Full details of the announcement are available at http://www.dcms.gov.uk/  
4. In the US , Coca-Cola is the company paying for the most instances of product placement, with 2,990 instances in the first six months of 2008, more than 30% of all placements by the ten top brands.  See http://en-us.nielsen.com/etc/medialib/nielsen_dotcom/en_us/documents/pdf/press_releases/2008/september.Par.41713.File.dat/pr_080915_download.pdf