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Food and Drink Advertising and Promotion Forum

  • Last modified date:
    13 October 2008

Choosing Health made a number of key commitments to address the important issue of the promotion of food and drink high in fat, salt and sugar to children. One such commitment was to establish a Food and Drink Advertising and Promotion Forum.

What are the aims of the Forum?

The Forum will review, supplement, strengthen and bring together existing provisions, including existing voluntary provisions for non-broadcast media.  It will also identify actions that could promote healthier food choices as well as advice on how to monitor and evaluate change. 

The Forum's work will also sit alongside the Ofcom consultation on the restriction of advertising of foods high in fat, salt and sugar to children through broadcast media and the existing ASA codes (BCAP and CAP).

Changes in food and drink advertising and promotion to children

Published: 13 October 2008

This report sets out the current restrictions for broadcast and non-broadcast media; the findings of the Thomson Intermedia research on overall food and drink advertising spend across a range of media, child-themed ad-spend and TV viewing figures; and the output of the Food and Drink Advertising and Promotion Forum.

Forum meetings

The inaugural meeting of the Forum took place on 7 July 2005 where it was agreed that the agendas and non-attributable minutes of the meetings would be posted on both the DH and FSA websites.  The next meeting of the Forum will take place in autumn 2007.

Who sits on the Forum?

Membership is drawn from a range of stakeholder organisations such as advertisers, food manufacturers, retailers, health professionals, academic experts and policy makers. Fiona Adshead, the Deputy Chief Medical Officer chairs the Forum. The members are as follows:

  • Department of Health (Chair)
  • Food Standards Agency
  • Ofcom
  • Advertising Standards Authority
  • The Voice of British Advertisers (ISBA)
  • Institute of Practitioners in Advertising
  • Advertising Association
  • Food Advertising Unit
  • British Retail Consortium
  • National Consumer Council
  • Food & Drink Federation
  • British Soft Drinks Association
  • British Hospitality Association
  • Which?
  • Local Authorities Coordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS)
  • Gerard Hastings (Strathclyde University)
  • National Children's Bureau
  • National Family and Parenting Institute
  • National Heart Forum
  • Regional Director Public Health
  • School Food Trust Chairperson
  • Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN)
  • Sustain
  • Committee on Advertising Practice

Forum Working Groups

The Forum agreed at its first meeting that Working Groups drawing from a wider group of representatives with particular interest or relevant experience.  These organisations or individuals should meet to look specifically at those areas of non-broadcast media not currently covered by the CAP code

Working Group Meetings

Point of Sale Seminar

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