Australian Food and Grocery Council Initiatives

From 1 July 2020, the AANA is responsible for the management of the Responsible Children’s Marketing Initiative (RCMI) and the Quick Service Restaurant Initiative for Responsible Advertising and Marketing to Children (QSRI).  The RCMI covers products found in retail outlets and the QSRI covers food sold in quick service restaurants.

These initiatives aim to:

• Reduce advertising and marketing to children for food and drinks that are not healthier choices.
• Use advertising and marketing to children promote healthy eating and lifestyles to children.
• Provide parents with a means to raise concerns about advertising to children.
• Companies that have signed up to the initiatives commit to:
  –  Only advertising healthier choices to children and encouraging a healthy lifestyle through good diet and physical activity
  –  Not paying for or seeking product placement television programs, editorial content or interactive games aimed at children,
  unless the product is a healthier choice.
  –  Not advertising and marketing to children in Australian schools unless they are asked to by those schools.

Since 1 June 2019, the AANA Food & Beverage Advertising Code (F&B Code) has contained a requirement that relevant food advertising to children must adhere to the AFGC initiatives, making them applicable to all advertisers, irrespective of whether they are signatories to the AFGC Initiatives (Initiatives) or not.

Complaints under the RCMI and QSRI are handled by the independent advertising complaints adjudicator, Ad Standards. Any member of the community who has a concern regarding advertising content can lodge a complaint with Ad Standards.

Action Plans

Each signatory to the Initiatives must develop Company Action Plans communicating how they will meet the Core Principles of the RCMI or QSRI. The signatory action plans are here:

RCMI

• Bega Cheese Limited
• Campbell Arnott’s
• Coca-Cola South Pacific
• Ferrero Australia Pty Ltd
• Fonterra Australia Pty Ltd
• General Mills Australia Pty Ltd
• George Weston Foods
• Kellogg (Aust) Pty Ltd
• Lion
• Mars Australia
• Mondelez International
• Nestlé Australia
• Patties Foods
• Pepsico Australia & New Zealand
• Sanitarium Health Food Company
• Simplot Australia Pty Ltd
• Unilever Australia & New Zealand

QSRI

• Chicken Treat
• Hungry Jacks Australia
• Oporto
• McDonald’s Australia
• Red Rooster
• Yum! Restaurants International