Marketing has a profound affect on the foods we eat and the beverages we drink, yet most of that marketing is for products we should avoid. BMSG monitors the media to help keep advocates informed of the tactics food and beverage companies use to target children, communities of color, and other groups that are particularly susceptible to the health harms these products cause. Below are archives of our monitoring.
Source: Travelers Today on July 16, 2012
Flouting public health concerns about the connection between sugary beverages and obesity-related health problems, Royal Caribbean has started to introduce specially-designed machines that dispense bottomless cups of Coca-Cola to passengers that buy "all-you-can-drink" packages.Source: MediaPost on July 15, 2012
Heineken is launching a Mexican dark beer called Indio in several major U.S. cities. The company plans to target bi-cultural Latino men aged 21-26 using multiple marketing platforms, including digital outreach, branded murals, and "The Indio Experience" roadshow.Source: Food Politics on July 13, 2012
Marion Nestle notes the irony of the soft drink industry sponsoring a conference to address a health issue for which its products are in large part responsible. She includes findings from the Rudd Center at Yale highlighting how the soda industry markets heavily to people of color.Source: QSR Magazine on July 13, 2012
The National Restaurant Association marks the first anniversary of Kids Live Well, an industry-generated set of voluntary nutrition guidelines that food chains must adhere to in order to participate. They claim the initiative increases healthy choices for families dining out.Source: MediaPost on July 12, 2012
Multi-chip packs feature mail-in offers for Skylander action figures. To head off criticisms from anti child-marketing advocates, Frito-Lay says the campaign is for "fans 13 and older." The campaign is an extension of one started with Skylanders game platform this spring.Source: AdWeek on July 12, 2012
Coca-Cola has partnered with Telemundo, a leading Spanish-language broadcaster, to develop an integrated marketing campaign that is directly targeted to U.S.-based Latinos and focuses on the upcoming summer Olympics. Coke is particularly interested in "establish[ing] a deeper relationship with [Latino] consumers" because they drive 40 to 60 percent of the company's growth.Source: QSR Magazine on July 11, 2012
Making it that much easier to eat processed convenience food, Domino's introduced a mobile ordering app on Amazon. They company is also releasing a mobile update for Pizza Hero, a virtual pizza-making "game."Source: Medical News Today on July 11, 2012
The study demonstrates how junk food marketing increases craving in "reward sensitive" individuals, and thereby indirectly draws attention to the role of marketing in unhealthy eating.Source: MediaPost on July 11, 2012
Many companies now use scannable codes to drive consumers to ads online. Taco Bell is jumping on the QR bandwagon with full-page print ads featuring codes made out of avocado images.Source: QSR Magazine on July 11, 2012
The chain's "Pizza Por Favor" campaign targeted Latinos by offering a free pizza to anyone who ordered in Spanish. The campaign resulted in thousands of give-aways and unprecedented sales for the chain. The brand director said the company is "very proud of [its] Latino focus."
