Compliance with self-regulation of television food and beverage advertising aimed at children in Spain

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the level of compliance with the PAOS Code (Publicidad, Actividad, Obesidad y Salud), which establishes standards for the self-regulation of food marketing aimed at minors, in television advertising by food and beverage companies that have agreed to abide by the Code.Design The study sample consisted of food and beverage advertisements targeting children during 80 h of programming by four Spanish television networks. The level of compliance with each standard of the PAOS Code was classified into three categories: compliance, non-compliance and uncertain compliance. Overall, an advertisement was considered compliant with the PAOS Code if it met all the standards; non-compliant if it contravened one or more standards; and uncertain in all other cases.Results Of a total of 203 television advertisements from companies that agreed to the PAOS Code, the overall prevalence of non-compliance was 493 % (v. 508 % among those that did not agree to the code), with 207 % of advertisements considered of uncertain compliance. Non-compliance was more frequent on Saturdays, in longer advertisements, in advertisements containing promotions or dairy products, and for advertisements from companies of French or US origin.Conclusions Non-compliance with the PAOS Code was very high and was similar for companies that did and did not agree to the Code, casting doubt on the Codes effectiveness and oversight system. It seems the time has come to commit to statutory regulations that reduce the negative impact of advertising on childrens diets, as demanded by public health experts and consumer associations. Copyright © 2009 The Authors.