Brands sign pledge to stop targeting young children in Malaysia

Ten companies signed the Responsible Advertising to Children pledge, which was done in collaboration with the Health Ministry, Malaysian Advertisers Association (MAA) and the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM).

The companies are: Coca-Cola, F&N Beverages Marketing, F&N Dairies, Guan Chong Cocoa Manufacturer, Mars Food Malaysia, McDonald’s Malaysia, Mondelez Sales, Nestle Products, PepsiCo (Malaysia) and Unilever (Malaysia) Holdings.

The companies agreed that there will be no advertisements targeting young children unless their products comply with the nutrition criteria based on scientific evidence or international dietary guidelines.

The pledge also includes a restriction from engaging in any commercial communication related to F&B products in primary schools, except if requested by or granted permission to do so by the school administration for educational purposes.

Last year, brands in Singapore, including Coca-Cola, Ferrero, General Mills, Mars and McDonald's, signed a similar pledge, entitled the Responsible Advertising to Children Pledge.