Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, School of Population Health, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
PLoS One. 2024 Oct 25;19(10):e0311579. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0311579. eCollection 2024.
Food marketing restrictions often apply nutrient profile models (NPM) to distinguish unhealthy products that should not be advertised, however brand-only marketing remains largely unaddressed. We sought to test a threshold method for classifying packaged food, beverage, or fast-food brands as (non)permitted for marketing, based on the nutrient profile of their product-lines.
We retrieved nutrient information from the Nutritrack databases for all products sold by the top 51 packaged food, beverage and fast-food brands in New Zealand, selected by market share. All products under each brand were classified as permitted (or not) to be marketed to children, using the NPM for WHO Western Pacific. The 25%, 50%, 75% and 90% threshold of brands' products permitted to market were compared. The 50% and 75% thresholds were compared to the WHO CLICK method, which is based on assessment of the brand's leading product.
The 90% threshold permitted 13% of the brands to be marketed to children. The 25% threshold permitted the marketing of 62% of brands. The 50% and 75% thresholds remained highly sensitive in identifying brands that should not be marketed to children. Comparison to the WHO CLICK method identified that a threshold method is more comprehensive and less arbitrary.
A threshold model based on product-line nutrient profiling provides a robust and option for brand classification. The 50% and 75% thresholds may be the most politically preferred options for use in regulation, while remaining highly effective.
Brand marketing (e.g. sponsorship) remains largely unaddressed in existing restrictions on unhealthy food and beverage marketing to children.An established Nutrient Profile Model can be applied to a brand's entire product line, allowing calculation of the proportion of products that would not be permitted to be advertised to children.Restricting brand marketing for food and beverage brands with less than 50% or 75% of their products classified as 'permitted to be marketed to children' is a robust and evidence-based method that can be applied in regulation, with potential to mitigate industry challenges.
食品营销限制通常应用营养概况模型（NPM）来区分不应做广告的不健康产品，但品牌营销仍在很大程度上未得到解决。我们试图测试一种基于产品系列营养概况对包装食品、饮料或快餐品牌进行分类（允许/不允许）营销的阈值方法。
我们从 Nutritrack 数据库中检索了新西兰市场份额排名前 51 的包装食品、饮料和快餐品牌的所有产品的营养信息。根据世卫组织西太平洋地区的 NPM，对每个品牌下的所有产品进行分类，确定其是否允许向儿童营销。比较了品牌产品允许营销的 25%、50%、75%和 90%的阈值。还比较了 50%和 75%的阈值与基于评估品牌主导产品的世卫组织 CLICK 方法。
90%的阈值允许 13%的品牌向儿童营销。25%的阈值允许营销 62%的品牌。50%和 75%的阈值在识别不应向儿童营销的品牌方面仍然非常敏感。与世卫组织 CLICK 方法的比较表明，阈值方法更全面、更不随意。
基于产品线营养概况的阈值模型为品牌分类提供了一种强大的选择。50%和 75%的阈值可能是在监管中使用的最受欢迎的政治选择，同时仍然非常有效。
现有的限制向儿童营销不健康食品和饮料的规定中，品牌营销（例如赞助）在很大程度上仍未得到解决。一个已建立的营养概况模型可以应用于品牌的整个产品线，从而可以计算出不允许向儿童广告的产品比例。限制品牌营销对于产品被归类为“允许向儿童营销”的比例低于 50%或 75%的食品和饮料品牌是一种稳健且基于证据的方法，可以在监管中应用，有可能减轻行业挑战。
