Foodwatch cartoon characters seduce children into unhealthy foods

Comics mislead children into unhealthy foods
Most children like comic figures like Bee Maja, Willi, or Wickie the Viking boys. Food companies use these figures to promote their products. The consumer organization Foodwatch criticizes that almost all of these comics advertised foods contain too much fat, sugar or salt.

Cartoon characters advertise unhealthy foods
The trend has been going on for years: children's favorite cartoon characters advertise numerous unhealthy foods, from fatty sausages to sugary croissants. This is shown by an overview of consumer organization Foodwatch presented in Berlin. The news agency AFP reports that the organization took a closer look at 34 products that are advertised with the Bee Maja and the Viking boy Wickie, among others. Foodwatch complained that only one product complied with World Health Organization (WHO) standards for balanced foods.

Cartoon characters in corn flakes entice you to unhealthy eating. (Image: Oksana Kuzmina / Fotolia)

"Shameless business at the expense of the youngest"
Amongst others, yoghurts, fruit slices, cold meats and milk drinks were examined. The majority of these products are advertised with the bee Maja, some with Wickie. According to Foodwatch, they sometimes contained too much sugar, fat or salt. Almost all products are not supposed to be advertised for children according to WHO's recent criteria. As the organization said, studies have shown that advertising with popular cartoon characters works especially with young children. It is a "shameless business at the expense of the youngest: the trust of the children in their pets is exploited to turn them as much sugary, greasy and salty junk food," said the Foodwatch expert for child marketing, Oliver Huizinga.

Colorful pictures - bright colors
Brand new is the criticism, however, not. For years, experts have pointed out that children are misled into unhealthy foods through colorful images of cartoon characters, bright colors on packaging or toys. For example, the Austrian Association for Consumer Information (VKI) announced earlier this year that children's milk products, among other things, are often more of a sweet tooth than a healthy food, as the advertising suggests. The association had 27 dairy products for children, such as the "Bee Maja Drink Strawberry" examined for the test.

E-mail protest action started
Against the background that the number of overweight and obese children continues to rise, advertising for such sugary and fatty foods is reprehensible. According to the information, the marketing rights to Maja and Wickie belong to the Belgian media company Studio 100. The company was asked by Foodwatch to make its licensing more responsible. The organization also called on consumers to support an e-mail protest against Studio 100. According to Foodwatch, the company refused a written statement on its licensing criteria. (Ad)