The extent and nature of television food advertising to children in Xi’an, China

Abstract

BackgroundTo explore the extent and nature of television food advertising especially unhealthy food advertising to primary school children in Xi’an, China.MethodsTelevision data were recorded for 2 weekdays and 2 weekend days between 6:00 and 22:00 during May and June in 2012 from a total of five television channels most popular with children in Xi’an. Pearson χ2 tests and logistic regression were applied to determine differences in the proportion of healthy food, unhealthy food and miscellaneous food advertisements for different channels, programs, dates, viewing periods and the use of persuasive marketing tactics.ResultsOf the 5527 advertisements transcribed, 25.5 % were for food, among which 48.1 % were considered to be unhealthy. The frequency of food advertisements was 6 per hour per channel, including 3 unhealthy food advertisements. Compared with healthy and miscellaneous food advertisements, more unhealthy food advertisements were shown during afternoon, weekends and children’s non-peak viewing times as well as on children’s television channels, central television channels and non-children’s programmes. Unhealthy foods contributed the highest proportion of all food advertisements containing promotional characters (51.7 %) and premium offers (59.1 %). Both promotional characters and premium offers appeared more on non-children’s television channels.ConclusionsThe majority of food advertisements were for unhealthy food. More unhealthy food ads were shown in children’s non-peak time and afternoon as well as non-children’s channels. More children-oriented persuasive marketing tactics were used in unhealthy food ads especially in non-children’s channels. Therefore, intervening in the entrance of unhealthy foods into the market and establishing regulations related to food advertising especially unhealthy food advertisements are important strategies to prevent children’s exposure to unhealthy food and childhood obesity.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-016-3468-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Non-core food product advertising on free-to-air television in Hong Kong

“…Baby and toddler milk formula and dietary supplements were identified as two major product types being promoted on Hong Kong television. Regarding food categories, non-core products were the most frequently advertised (35•2 % of food advertisements) in Hong Kong, which is in line with international studies (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24) . The rate of non-core product advertising in Hong Kong was 2•3 advertisements per channel hour, which is lower than the reported global average of 3•4 (20) and the Asia-Pacific average of 6•0 (22) .…”

“…Our results reflect that when it comes to food products, advertisers in Hong Kong utilise a different set of persuasive marketing techniques than advertisers in other countries. Techniques commonly used in non-core product advertising in other countries, such as promotional characters and premium offers (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24) , are not frequently used in Hong Kong. Instead, non-core product advertising in Hong Kong emphasises sensory characteristics (e.g., appearance and taste) and emotive claims (e.g., having fun and happiness).…”

“…Previous studies on the extent and nature of television food advertising concluded that the non-core food advertising rate was higher during children's viewing time (19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24) . On the contrary, the literature shows that prime time is more likely to be associated with the airing of advertisements for non-core products than advertisements for core products (defined as items that form part of a healthy diet such as vegetables and fruits) (25)(26)(27)(28) .…”

Scoping review of studies on food marketing in Latin America: Summary of existing evidence and research gaps

“…These results agree with those found by other studies worldwide. In the United States, a study by Powell et al 64 66 studied food promotions aired on television after statutory restrictions; food and drink ads were the third most advertised product with a frequency of 11.9%. In China, a recent study by Danyong et al 67 reports that food advertisements constitute 25.5% of television ads and in a comparative study conducted in 2010 by research groups in Australia, Asia, Europe, North America and South America, food items represented 18% of all television advertisements and represented the second most advertised product 17 .…”

A Content Analysis of Appeals in Food and Beverage TV Commercials

“…Puggelli and Bertolotti, 2013, Li et al, 2016, Mchiza et al, 2013, Fosu et al, 2013, Boyland et al, 2012, Ponce-Blandon et al, 2017, Guran et al, 2010, Chang et al, 2018. In order to generate a likable brand in the mind of a consumer emotional appeals demonstrating positive or negative feeling associated with a product is commonly used in food advertisements(Page and Brewster, 2007, Hebden et al, 2011).…”