Nutritional Composition of Brazilian Food Products Marketed to Children

Abstract

Most food industry marketing in products targeted at children is found in packages of foods containing either excessive fat, sugar, or salt. This study audited all 5620 packaged foods available in a store of a large Brazilian supermarket chain and retrieved information from the nutrition facts tables on package labels. Products were photographed for further visual analysis to determine the presence of marketing strategies directed at children. Comparison of nutrient content per 100 g between children’s and non-children’s food products employed the Student t-test or the Mann–Whitney U-test (p-value < 0.05), due to the non-normal distribution of the nutritional composition data as verified through the Shapiro–Wilk test. Brazilian children’s food products from groups 4, 5, and 7 presented higher carbohydrate content than similar non-children’s products, while children’s food products from groups 1 and 7 presented lower fiber content. Results indicate that regulation on food labeling needs revising as it has not been effective in stopping the marketing of energy-dense nutrient-poor foods towards children.

Relationship between Marketing to Children on Food Labeling and Critical Nutrient Content in Processed and Ultra-Processed Products Sold in Supermarkets in Lima, Peru

“…The main results of this study are consistent with other studies previously performed on the market [20][21][22][23][24][25][26]. Elliot C [21] found that there is indeed a significant relationship between the use of promotional techniques on packaging and the nutritional content of products, proving that 88.8% of products that used these strategies were classified as low nutritional quality products.…”

Sugar Content and Nutritional Quality of Child Orientated Ready to Eat Cereals and Yoghurts in the UK and Latin America; Does Food Policy Matter?

“…Similar findings are reported for REBCs in Guatemala [12], Mexico [8] and Ecuador [13]. However, there is a well-established body of evidence that consistently highlights concerns about the nutritional quality of REBCs and yoghurts marketed to children, in particular the high sugar content, while other nutrients of concern are fat, sodium, protein and fibre [9,[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27]. In the UK, REBCs and yoghurts contribute to 15% and 16% of free sugar intake in children aged 1.5-10 years, respectively [11].…”

Nutrient Composition of Foods Marketed to Children or Adolescents Sold in the Spanish Market: Are They Any Better?

“…Results in the present work showed a similar proportion of foods targeted at children or adolescents (17.5%) to the ones obtained in a large study in the USA evaluating 56,900 total foods (9105 products, 16%) [ 19 ]. Lower rates were observed in a work carried out in Brazil with 5620 packaged foods (9.5%) and in another in Slovenia (5.3% of 8191 total prepacked foods) [ 16 , 25 ]. Two publications on breakfast cereals showed variable proportions of foods targeted at children: 46% in a sample from the USA, while 17% in another from supermarkets in Auckland, New Zealand [ 22 , 36 ].…”

“…In a study in Brazil, authors audited 5620 packaged foods and found variable results, depending on the food group [ 25 ]. They found higher carbohydrates content for children’s foods in three groups.…”

“…Only a few papers address the nutritional differences between foods marketed to children and those not marketed to them [ 22 , 25 , 26 , 27 ]. A study in the USA found that the increased presence of child-targeted cues was associated with more sugar and less fibre and protein [ 27 ].…”