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: Los Angeles Times on November 01, 2013
Almost 350,000 people signed a change.org petition urging Kraft to remove artificial dyes from its macaroni and cheese products. The company agreed but will only replace the dyes with spices in certain varieties of the iconic product.Source: CPG matters on November 01, 2013
When Family Dollar decided to partner with Coca-Cola, Coke worked with the company on ways to drive purchases of its products. Through custom research, Family Dollar learned that 40% of its shoppers have an annual income of $40,000 or less, and 30% make less than $20,000 a year. The companies leveraged both Coca-Cola's and Family Dollar's Facebook pages to engage shoppers. In a clear example of targeting low-income consumers, bus shelter ads became a key component of the companies' joint campaign.Source: The New York Times on November 01, 2013
Michael Moss, New York Times reporter and author of Salt Sugar Fat: How the food giants hooked us, explores an idea that is gaining traction with some health advocates: using the food industry's "slick" advertising to promote healthy foods -- in this case, broccoli.Source: The Huffington Post on October 30, 2013
Unhealthy products are "relentlessly marketed" to kids not just on Halloween but all year. The author, a dietician, brings attention to the dangerous amounts of sugar in products that are seemingly healthy, including Wheaties Fuel cereal and Quaker Dinosaur Eggs Oatmeal.Source: The Age on October 28, 2013
Aiming to denormalize junk food company products and practices, the author, an Australian professor of health policy, compares the food industry to Big Tobacco and deems it an even bigger problem.Source: USA Today on October 27, 2013
In an effort to bring in customers on a night when families traditionally eat at home, many restaurant chains are offering free or discounted meals to kids who dress up on Halloween. Chains using some variation of the promotion tactic include Olive Garden, Red Lobster, IHOP, Krispy Kreme, and Chipotle.Source: MediaPost on October 25, 2013
The new loyalty program, which will first be tested in four pilot markets, features a mobile app that allows customers to rack up loyalty points on every dollar they spend at the store. It also allows customers to load money onto the app for in-store purchases, and it will allow for the company to personalize special offers based on digitally collected demographic information.Source: Advertising Age on October 25, 2013
Playing on the parental fear of child tantrums, Papa Murphy's latest ad campaign features the company's 'Jack-o-Lantern' pizzas as the solution to hunger-inspired kid meltdowns. According to a representative of the ad agency that designed the campaign for Papa Murphy's, "The pizza solves all those problems because it's good, easy and fun and kids will eat it."Source: ConfectioneryNews.com on October 23, 2013
Snack manufacturers, anxious to be part of the $2.08 billion that Americans spend on Halloween candy, are using every strategy at their disposal to make their way into our children's treat bags this year. This article includes suggestions for how the makers of salty, high fat, low-nutrient snacks can appeal to health-conscious consumers by reformulating their foods and entice parents and kids using wacky flavors and colorful packaging.Source: Advertising Age on October 22, 2013
Cheetos, the self-proclaimed 'mischievous' snack, partnered with Google to put the 'trick' back into Trick-or-Treat. Project T.P. allows young social media users to 'partner with Chester Cheetah' to virtually cover any location in toilet paper using Google Earth and Google Streetview. Results can then be shared via other social media outlets.
