As EU mulls ban, self-regulation is advised

Europe's obesity problem is being tackled by the European Commission with a threat to ban the advertising of junk food to children, unless the food industry exercises some form of self-regulation.

The Malta Chamber of Commerce and Enterprise feels its members would prefer self-regulation than risk being faced with legislation, deputy director general Kevin J. Borg told The Times.

Markos Kyprianou, the European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Affairs, said last week urgent action was needed to tackle Europe's obesity problem, particularly among young people.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr Kyprianou said he wanted companies selling products with high fat, sugar or salt content to stop marketing such products directly to children. "I would like to see the industry not advertising directly to children any more," he was quoted as saying.

The regulation of junk food adverts to children could help ease the problem of obesity, Yvette Azzopardi, principal scientific officer for nutrition at the Health Promotion Department, said.

Speaking to The Times, Ms Azzopardi said such regulations could help ease the obesity problem if used as a long-term strategy because the food industry did target children with its adverts.

Malta has one of the highest rates of obesity among children and according to the International Obesity Task Force, 35 per cent of Maltese children aged 10 or thereabout are overweight or obese, putting the island only second on the list. Italy tops the list of 21 European countries with 36 per cent of overweight and obese 10-year-olds.

Obesity can have a multitude of effects on children. The New York University Child Study Centre said overweight children are more likely to develop many health problems such as high cholesterol and high blood pressure, which are associated with heart disease in adults.

It says the incidence of Type 2 diabetes, which was previously considered an adult disease, has increased dramatically among overweight children. At the same time there are psychological effects, including social discrimination and low self-esteem.

Mr Kyprianou expressed his belief that self-regulation in the food industry was the quickest and most effective way to tackle the problem but also warned that the European Commission would resort to legislation if progress proved disappointing.

The EU commissioner said that until recently Europe "considered obesity to be a US problem" and "we made fun of the Americans in a way". However, he said, "it is a European problem now".

The chamber's Mr Borg said experience showed that in similar cases members acted in the most ethical way and adopted strict self-regulation that prevented the need for legislation.

He said the majority of members were aware of consumer behaviour and the trend towards more healthy eating. Advertising was certainly an important tool within the marketing strategy of each business and restrictions could have an effect on sales. However, he added, the chamber was confident that the marketing strategies of its upstanding members already included reasonable levels of self-regulation.

He said that although the issue had not so far been extensively discussed, the chamber did not exclude doing so, especially if members asked it to research the issue further. It was expected that the issue would feature on the agenda for discussion during the Association of European Chambers of Commerce - Eurochambres - meetings.

"Besides expressing the views of the Maltese business community, the chamber will obtain further guidance from such Eurochambres initiatives for the benefit of Maltese companies," he said.

Two of the most renowned fast food outlets - McDonald's and Burger King - are among the main attractions for children. When contacted through its local representative, Burger King Corporation said it was currently reviewing its marketing strategy with regard to advertising aimed to children.

"We agree that any advertising aimed at children must be responsible and we already adhere to strict codes of practice. We support self-regulation initiatives and recently signed an agreement to abide by the World Federation of Advertising code to promote responsible advertising," a spokesman for the corporation said.

It said it was actively working to reduce the salt, fat and sugar content in its core products and children's menu. "For example, we are currently in the process of moving to using only non-trans fat cooking and processing oils in all core products across the European Union. Delivery will commence in March 2005 and the region will act as the international test bed for future roll-out in other regions around the world."

Contacted by The Times, the local spokesman for McDonald's said the company's fundamental belief was to be responsible and responsive to families. She said being responsible meant that all communication targeting children conformed to the advertising legal standards and practices in Malta.

"Should there be any new EU directives regarding advertising, then McDonald's Malta will abide by these regulations as it has always done," she added.

The spokesman said McDonald's Corporation had for a long time focused on energy balance, enhanced choices for children and providing additional educational and nutritional information since it wanted to help people make informed decisions.

She said last year McDonald's Malta added new choices to its Happy Meal menu. The company also provided nutritional information on the back of tray liners and through nutritional leaflets available at the restaurants.

It also supported a number of sporting events and activities to reflect its advocacy of an active lifestyle for children, the spokesman pointed out.