Television advertisements for fast food and sweets aimed at children will have to carry strong health warnings in future, under sweeping new restrictions from the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI).
In future advertisements for cakes, sweets, biscuits and chocolate, aimed at children, must show a toothbrush symbol on the screen. The BCI said it wanted to educate children that such products had implications for dental health.
All fast food advertisements aimed at children will have to be accompanied by an announcement or visual message stating that such food "should be eaten in moderation and as part of a balanced diet". The BCI said fast food was inexpensive food that was "prepared and served quickly".
The requirement to alert children to the dangers of over consumption of sweets and fast food is included in the new BCI code. The BCI will now seek further submissions before implementing the code among TV stations and advertisers.
The BCI said programmes where more than 50 per cent of the audience were over 18 would not be impacted.
While the BCI has rejected a total ban on children's advertising, it has introduced a range of restrictions which are unlikely to prove popular with advertisers and commercial TV and radio stations.
Celebrities or sports starts will not be allowed to promote food and drink products aimed at children from now on unless the advertisement is part of a "public health or education campaign".
Characters or personalities from children's programmes will also be restricted from endorsing or advertising products or services.
Children's advertising will also have to be "clearly separated from programming content". Broadcasters will be required to alert children when a commercial break is beginning and ending.
The BCI has under the Broadcasting Act 2001 the power to introduce codes governing advertising and other forms of commercial promotion. The chairman of the BCI, Mr Conor Maguire SC, said the organisation was not getting into arguments about which kind of food was healthy. He said the BCI was responding to over 560 submissions on the issue.
The Children's Rights Alliance said the code did not go far enough.