Children under 16 spend £13 million on sweets and snacks each week in the UK*

How junk food companies target your kids

And it could get worse

If you think this is as bad as it can get, then think again. Marketers in the United States have taken junk food advertising to a whole new level. Advertisers place their messages in schools, they provide school canteens and pay to have their products featured in video games.

McDonalds
Some primary schools in America are handing children report cards covered in McDonalds branding. The cards promise a free Happy Meal to children with good grades.

Coca-Cola
To get free minutes with Virgin Mobile USA, all children in the US have to do is subscribe to a website and view Coca-Cola’s latest adverts. Alongside that, Coca-Cola has set up an online community for young people where they can create their own characters to live in a Coca-Cola branded world and use Coca-Cola reward points gained from buying Coca-Cola products.

Burger King
In the US, Burger King has set up its own online TV channel called ‘Diddy TV’. The channel is fronted by rap star, P. Diddy and is covered in Burger King branding.

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Some primary schools in America issue children's report cards covered in McDonalds branding. The cards promise a free Happy Meal to children with good grades.Did you know?

*National Consumer Council