As part of a campaign against advertising for foods high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS), nine mayors have pledged to “prioritise children’s health” by removing HFSS ads from public transport.
The campaign, ‘AdEnough’, was launched by TV chef Jamie Oliver in 2018 to “protect kids from junk food marketing”.
Jamie Oliver commented: “If kids are constantly being targeted with cheap, easily accessible, unhealthy junk food, just think how hard it must be to make better, healthier choices. We have to make it easier for children to make good decisions.
“These ads undermine any positive work we’re doing in schools or at home to tackle the rise of childhood obesity. Currently, there’s nothing in place to protect our kids from seeing these adverts – apart from literally covering their eyes!”
He said it was time to “put child health first”, and called for a 9pm ban on HFSS advertising on TV as well as “proper controls on what ads kids see online, in the street and on public transport”.
In September the Government announced its intention to ban HFSS ads from TV before 9pm, and now nine mayors have pledged to stop HFSS ads being displayed on public transport networks across their areas.
The nine mayors involved operate across:
- North East
- Greater Manchester
- Liverpool
- North Yorkshire
- South Yorkshire
- West Yorkshire
- Cambridgeshire
- Peterborough
- West Midlands
