Leading GCC-based companies fully compliant with Pledge on Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children

The International Food & Beverage Alliance (IFBA) member companies operating in the UAE and Saudi Arabia were found to have adhered fully to their Pledge on Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children, a recent study has found.

The study was carried out by audit and verification agency IPSOS, which independently audited GCC-based alliance members.

These members include Ferrero, General Mills, Kellogg Company, Mars, Mondelēz MEA FZE, Nestlé, PepsiCo, The Coca-Cola Export corporation (Dubai Branch) and Unilever.

The Responsible Food and Beverage Marketing to Children Pledge is a voluntary commitment by the signatory companies to conduct responsible food and beverage marketing to children. Additionally, GCC FBA is committed to improving nutrition and supporting healthier lifestyles among children.

The pledge informs and benchmarks how food and beverage products are marketed in a responsible way to children under the age of 12 in the region. It also covers products containing saturated fats, trans-fatty acids, sugars and salt in its scope.

The endorsement of the Responsible Marketing to Children pledge by the Advertising Business Group (ABG) in 2018 was the first step towards making it a standard across the advertising and marketing industry via self-regulation.

The pledge applies to marketing material across multiple channels including TV, print, owned/third-party websites, radio, cinema, and interactive games, among others. All marketing and advertising campaigns are monitored by an independent external agency to ensure compliance with the pledge.

Member companies developed a set of regional nutrition criteria based on the European Union pledge. The EU pledge is recognized across the globe including by the Saudi Food & Drug Authority.

All participating companies in the pledge have implemented front-of-pack calorie labelling, based on the guideline daily amount (GDA) across all their products.

Sarah Sakr, Co-Chair, GCC FBA, and head of corporate communication and institutional affairs at Ferrero – MENA said: “On behalf of GCC FBA we are thrilled to have once again achieved a 100 percent compliance rate against our pledge. We believe that this serves as a strong testament to the importance and efficiency of industry self-regulation. Looking ahead, we will remain steadfast in our commitment to transparency and accountability through third-party monitoring.”