Fast Food Advertising and Product Labelling

[FP]

I would love to hear what AB'ers think about the latest proposals from the Government to ban advertising fast food before 9.00pm so that parents are not 'bullied' by their children to buy fast, unhealthy food such as beefburgers!  They also intend to put labels on such food with colours to indicate how unhealthy they are!

[andy hughes]

Another ludicrious 'We are doing something ..... except we aren't really!' move from the Government. Parents feed children, and anyone who is 'bullied' into buying unhealthy food by their child has issues far more serious than possible obesity. When you are dealing with a Health Minister who reckons that smoking is one of the few pleasures for 'working class' women (and who only gave up a 50-a-day habit two years ago) you have to examine the potential 'people in glass houses / stones' interface here. If the government seriously wants to stop obesity in children, it should look at moving PE and Games back into the national Curriculum, and make the streets safe enough for children to walk to and from school, and educate parents into good diets, which can then be passed onto their children. Come on! this is basic stuff - what is this Government playing at!

[FP]

Great answer Andy!   I was just going to post how I felt, but you have covered most of what I was going to put.  Again, the Government is trying to take over what parents should be doing!     There are serious parenting issues in this country - perhaps the government should invest their time and effort into finding out why and trying to change the situation. 

 

 

[OBonio]

Nanny nanny nanny nanny.  Make me sick this country.

[mullein]

i totally agree with you all more p.e. and more sport in general..i dont agree with the advertising as a beefburger would not be unhealthy in moderation..and as for labelling the food well some people are a bit thick and it may help them choose a healthy substitute .also i think schools could start teaching domestic science again and teach the kids to cook healthy food..kids leave school now and havnt got a clue how to cook so fast convienience food is all they know..i saw an experiment once where they gave young unmarried mothers �5 and they were escorted to the local market to spend the �5 on ingredients to cook a healthy meal..as they hadnt got a clue..a lot of people on benefits claim they cant eat well because they are on low income its rubbish..i bake my own bread every day and it costs 30p a loaf..you can go to local markets and buy chicken and mince cheap and plenty of fruit and veg,,if they bought mince they could make their own beefburgers without fat or preservatives..the majority can either not cook or its just lazy to eat junk..the education should begin in the schools,,

[mullein]

i totally agree with you all more p.e. and more sport in general..i dont agree with the advertising as a beefburger would not be unhealthy in moderation..and as for labelling the food well some people are a bit thick and it may help them choose a healthy substitute .also i think schools could start teaching domestic science again and teach the kids to cook healthy food..kids leave school now and havnt got a clue how to cook so fast convienience food is all they know..i saw an experiment once where they gave young unmarried mothers �5 and they were escorted to the local market to spend the �5 on ingredients to cook a healthy meal..as they hadnt got a clue..a lot of people on benefits claim they cant eat well because they are on low income its rubbish..i bake my own bread every day and it costs 30p a loaf..you can go to local markets and buy chicken and mince cheap and plenty of fruit and veg,,if they bought mince they could make their own beefburgers without fat or preservatives..the majority can either not cook or its just lazy to eat junk..the education should begin in the schools,,mullein

[FP]

I agree with everything you say Mullein,except that I believe that education begins in the home, not in School.    Children's first experience of preparing and cooking meals should from their parents. 

[FP]

error: 'Should come from their parents'

[flanker]

Just another example of the state nannying us - typical Labour reverting to type really.

[Oneeyedvic]

Welcome to Blair's Britain!

 

Just playing Devil's advocate for a moment though:

 

Banning the advertising of unhealthy food - not really a bad thing - we don't allow advertising of cigarettes do we? Yes, a little of anything in moderation is normally okay - however, there are a lot of adults out there who are unhealthy, and we are as a nation (myself included) overweight.

 

If you do not allow these unhealthy food products to advertise, they will still exist (look at cigarettes), however I am fairly sure that the amount of people smoking has gone down, so obviously the lack of advertising as well as the health risks have had an impact.

 

Labels on food.....not necessarily a bad thing. Again, going to the 'working class' a lot of these people do not have a good education and do not understand the differences between good and bad foods. I don't look at salt content on food that I buy. A lot of economy food does contain higher amounts of salt though. If you can simplify things why not? I am sure people looked at decimilisation with the same sort of outlook - why bother changing something that works.

 

Yes, exercise is an issue, but whilst parents are suing because little Johnny got his finger hurt, school's hands are tied.

 

Safety on the way to school - I cycled to school when I was a kid - only 20 years ago and around 6 miles each way. But only in summer. And I never cycle anymore.

I used to live on a house estate in Northampton - perfectly safe to walk to school - the mothers and fathers still used to drop the kids off though! I blame the parents!

 

[Octavius]

Perhaps they should just transmit adverts that warn of the dangers of too much fast food, and how wonderfully good it would be to go out and do some sport and PE.

 

I hope they ban those annoying ringtone adverts on the TV - they are brainwashing the kids  

[Hgrove]

I had not heard of this, but if they ban fast food ads on tv I shall not miss them.  In fact I wish they would stop advertising toys before 9am - we stopped watching Milkshake and only watch Cbeebies now because of the toy ads.

[cheyenne]

I think its a Brilliant Idea,To ban adds up to nine o,clock.who needs the nasty Stuff  MCDonalds try to peddle as food!!And the traffic light system is a very good idea to.As for John reed given up fags 2 years ago,good on him,What the hell as that got to do with anything?its a reality if we like it or not,parents are pressurised into buying junk food as much as buying the latest mobile,some of us can say no ,others find it easier to give in.At least the goverment are trying, what with the smoking Bans etc.Some people are never sattisfied!!

[Octavius]

I am satisfied several nights a week, as is my gf

[Oneeyedvic]

Octavius - that's not what your gf said ;-0

[maurizio]

I think the Government is both right and wrong.Have you seen that programme "you are what you eat". That is an eye opener.  Parents should be able to cook healthy food for their children. As I see it the majority are just lazy and buy prepacked/cooked meal shoved into the microwave or sausages and chips, or beans on toast. Are they healthy meals? I personally know a lot of people who can't cook, won't cook. I spend at least between half to over an hour every evening trying to prepare something healthy, so you need time in preparing a meal. It should be part of a daily routine and not a 5 min job. I remember as a child there were ads on the telly of "junk food" but my mother would think twice before  buying us any. I remember drinking coka cola at the dinner table was a treat, only once in a while. Another thing: Have you ever seen rows and rows of crips/sweets/butter/fats/precooked meals in supermarkets in any other European country? Only in England. I think there is enough demand here for producers/companies of such products and for the Governments that makes a profit too. I blame both those companies, supermarkets for dispensing us  constantly with all this junk food and the people who buy the stuff. If nobody would buy any of this crap, I am sure were there is less demand there is less production.I also think they should label junk food like they do on packets of cigarettes.  I for one do not even own a microwave, let alone spending my money on plastic food. We have a long way to go....  Sorry I got a bit carried away.....

[liljoolz]

so any one fancy a big mac?

[Bangkok]

If there was a system of highlighting unhealthy food, then you can be sure that the food industry would spend that extra fraction of the cost to make it much healthier!  Is that a bad thing?

[Hyphen]

Dear Mr McDonald,

I am writing to tell you that there will now be a law against you switching your neon lights adverising your outlets until 9pm due to an influx in obesity in young children.

I do apologise if this causes your company to lose money but that's just tough cause I'm the Primeminster and I shall do as I please even though this is the most ludicrous idea my Government and I have ever had.

Mr Tony Blair

 

(Yeah, I can just see it now!!  Massive uproar, major Court cases, costing the country more money than it needs to)

[FP]

Dear Parents,

 

I should like to inform you that from now on you do not have to take any responsibility for your children's upbringing.  We, the Government, will totally take over and make sure that you don't have the inconvenience of being pestered and bullied by your children as well as being frightened that you might upset them by enforcing any sort of discipline.

 

Yours sincerely

Tony Blair

 

(with apologies and thanks to Hyphen)

 

 

[FP]

Thanks all for your replies.