Major food companies like Mondelez India struggle to avoid preteens online

MUMBAI: Under the International Food & Beverage Alliance (IFBA), major food companies had taken a global pledge a few years ago to stop advertising and promotional activities targeted at kids below 12 years of age. However, the advent of the digital medium is proving to be more challenging for these companies. Some of them are tweaking their internal guidelines to ensure they remain committed to the purpose in the digital space as well.

Digital is said to be more porous as a medium and can attract a substantial preteen traffic. Mondelez India Foods has framed specific internal guidelines with respect to digital, internet and online media, stating it will not advertise or place branded advergames or downloads on third-party websites or digital sites where more than 35% of the total visitors are children under 12.

So brand websites, according to the internal guidelines at the company, will be designed to appeal to adults or children aged 12 and older. Moving a step further, Mondelez said it will not permit children under 12 to register on their websites.

"On our branded websites, we will add age-screening for contests, games, audio and visual downloads and e-mail/tell-a-friend features. Online games, including branded advergames, will be intended to appeal to children aged 12 and older - even if the game is intended to be downloaded and/or played with a parent," said a Mondelez India Foods spokesperson.




With respect to its company website, Nestle too has an age-screening mechanism for content subscription as well as accessing the registered-only content. At Coca-Cola, the policy clearly states that it does not advertise to children under 12 years old and the company does not place advertising in media where 35% of the audience is made up of children under 12 years old. This policy applies to all media which directly targets children under 12, including television shows, print media, websites, social media, movies, and SMS/email marketing.

But here's the challenge: Citing a recent industry survey, Bhasker Canagaradjou, head, Ipsos Business Consulting, India, said, "Approximately 70% of children in the age group of 8-13 in India are using digital platforms like Facebook, Google Plus, Flickr, etc."

This trend, according to Canagaradjou, is similar across different classes of towns and regions. "This generation of preteen is growing up with the internet as a daily and routine part of their lives. Today's preteens seem to be inseparable from their gadgets, which have become an extension of their personality.

Smartphones, tablets and computers are the first screens they go to followed by TV. These kids are able to access information which otherwise were out of their reach or controlled," he said. Given the broad statistic of the percentage of children using popular digital channels, companies would have a tough task to screen the target audience on this medium. Unlike broadcasting and print media, which have codes regarding advertising to kids, Canagaradjou said the internet is unregulated. A Nestle India spokesperson said, "While developing content for advertising, we consider all channels/platforms of placement and ensure that the overall impression of the marketing communication is in accordance with the guidelines of Nestle Communication Principles."

Nestle is a signatory to the India Pledge and committed to following the pledge for advertising on television, print, radio and social media to children under the age of 12 years in India. The Nestle spokesperson said, "No advertising or marketing activity is directed at children under 6. Advertising for children from 6 to 12 is restricted to products with a nutritional profile which helps children achieve a healthy and balanced diet. Hence, it is against our principles to sponsor or place advertising in television and radio programmes, or magazines and websites, targeting children."

The Mondelez India Foods spokesperson said the company also does not engage in smartphone/mobile media marketing directed to children under 12. This includes the development and dissemination of tablets and smartphone apps and games. The company claims it does not direct or encourage children under age 12 to interact with its brands on social media sites (eg, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube).

But children are a very large market for a wide range of products that they can buy, or influence their parents to buy. Canagaradjou believes "with the overall digital ad spend market expected to grow at 40% annually in the next four-five years, and with the restriction in the traditional media channels, the companies will naturally increase the spend on digital platforms to target the preteen segment as an audience".

The Coca-Cola spokesperson said the company openly participates in audits by external organizations that monitor its advertising.