June 2011Prepared Foods-- When it comes to the television ads children are seeing, fewer appear to be for foods and beverages. Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and Association of National Advertisers (ANA) research finds the average number of such ads (viewed by kids aged 2-11) on children’s programming fell 50% between 2004-2010.

Furthermore, the advertised foods and beverages, themselves, have changed over that time. Advertisements dropped for cookies (99%), soft drinks (96%), gum and mints (nearly 100%), candy (68%), snack bars (nearly 100%), all snacks (71%), frozen and refrigerated pizza (95%) and breads/pastries/waffles/pancakes (nearly 100%).

So, which foods and beverages were advertised more to children over that time? Advertisements for fruit and vegetable juices increased by 199%. Much of the change, particularly among beverage advertising, has been attributed to the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI), a self-regulatory program administered by the Council of Better Business Bureaus and created in response to FTC and IOM reports in 2005.