Health Minister Chua Soi Lek has told Malaysian 4As chairman Datuk Vincent Lee he will press on with plans to ban advertising to children under 10 years of age.
The decision follows a series of meetings between fast food operators, the 4As and the Government that appeared to be moving towards self-regulation, not an outright ban.
Datuk Vincent Lee said: “The Government has gone too far, and is pushing through a ban. But the Health Minister understands our situation. When he presents his proposal to the cabinet, he will include our paper in his presentation — so nothing is quite decided yet.”
The ban is expected to cover broadcast advertising only. According to the proposals, commercials targeting children under 10 will be banned between 4pm and 8pm — considered primetime viewing slots for advertisers. Restrictions will include sponsorship of kids’ TV programming.
Malaysia’s biggest fast food advertisers are McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut, which spend an estimated RM280 million (US$80 million) on advertising. The accounts are handled by Leo Burnett, BBDO and Ogilvy & Mather, respectively.
The move follows reports that Chua has blamed fast food advertising for rising levels of obesity and associated diseases in Malaysia. Forty per cent of Malaysian adults are considered overweight.
Fast food ad bans have been growing in popularity recently, but only in more developed countries. Korea will introduce a ban on fast food advertising on TV, radio and the internet until after 9pm by 2010. In the UK, a similar ban moved beyond broadcast media to include press, outdoor and online last month, and industry observers fear lobby groups will now push for bans in other ‘sin’ categories, such as gambling and heavy-polluting cars.
