We’ve been waiting and waiting and waiting for the official guidance to be announced ahead of the 4 January HFSS advertising watershed ban. And as I write this it’s finally come through – a whole month in advance – from the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP). What a joke.
Already supermarkets have had to take an educated guess with their Christmas ads (after the original deadline was set at 1 October). And at least they will be reassured that their efforts have not been in vain. A similar caution can be expected when brands unveil their post-Christmas campaigns.
Meanwhile, it will come as no surprise that so-called less healthy food brands are using outdoor media more, just as they will also doubtless embrace newspapers and magazines, sponsorship, podcasts and more for as long as they are legal.
There isn’t time in this week’s issue to analyse its significance, highlight surprises, examine opportunities. That will have to wait until next week, when our review of the top campaigns of the year will also consider whether the new ad restrictions might herald a new golden age of creativity.
But having presided over this farcical mismanagement of the HFSS advertising restrictions, the government looks set to cause more chaos, with plans to kickstart a new consultation on the nutrient profiling model (NPM) in January that is expected to make the recent extension of the soft drinks sugar levy look like “a walk in the park” (p5).
Among other casualties, juices and smoothies are once again in its sights. Leaving aside the absurdity of ‘clamping down’ on the healthy dose of energy that naturally occurring fruits provide, this is not the time to be tinkering. The NPM is not perfect. But if the government is serious about growth (in the economy, not the welfare state), it needs to maintain stable definitions of healthy food and drink in all regulations aimed at driving healthier choices. Consistency and certainty gives companies the confidence to invest in new recipes and new products. If the only constant is shifting the policy goalposts, it undermines investment and damages confidence.
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