... The StanMark project bringstogetherresearchers and policy‐makers to develop a set of standards for marketing foods and beverages consistentwith the resolution of the WorldHealthAssembly.ObjectivesConvene a series of meetings in Europe and the USA to bringtogetherkeymembers of the scientificresearchcommunity and policy‐makingcommunity to considerhow marketing food and beverages mayaffect children shealth.Identifycurrent‘bestpractice’approaches to the control of marketing, includingmeasuresnotspecificallyaddressing food and beverage marketing, ornotspecificallydirected to the protection of children. Explore the use of standards and marketing codes to influencecommercialactivity,including standards fromotherindustrialsectors.Propose a set of standards to form the basis for a cross‐bordercode of marketing of foods and beverages. Developweb‐basedresources for policydevelopmentconcerning food and beverage marketing to children and relatedmaterials to supportpolicydevelopment. Project partners ... high in saturated fats, trans-fatty acids, free sugars, or salt. StanMark Standards for marketing to children The StanMark project bringstogetherresearchers and policy‐makers to develop a set of standards for marketing foods and beverages consistentwith the resolution of the WorldHealthAssembly.ObjectivesConvene a series of meetings in Europe and the USA to bringtogetherkeymembers of the scientificresearchcommunity and policy‐makingcommunity to considerhow marketing food and beverages mayaffect children shealth.Identifycurrent‘bestpractice’approaches to the control of marketing, includingmeasuresnotspecificallyaddressing food and beverage marketing, ornotspecificallydirected to the protection of children. Explore the use of standards and marketing codes to influencecommercialactivity,including standards fromotherindustrialsectors.Propose a set of standards to form the basis for a cross‐bordercode of marketing of foods and beverages. Developweb‐basedresources for policydevelopmentconcerning food and beverage marketing to children and relatedmaterials to supportpolicydevelopment. Project partners ... The marketing of foods and non‐alcoholic beverages with a highcontent of fat,sugarorsaltreaches children throughout the world.Effortsmustbemade to ensurethat children everywhereareprotectedagainst the impact of such marketing and given the opportunity to grow and develop in anenabling food environment—onethatfosters and encourageshealthydietarychoices and promotes the maintenance of healthyweight.DrAlaAlwan,AssistantDirectorGeneral,WorldHealthOrganization17 and followedthisupwith a websiteofferingfreemealvouchers to thosewhocanidentify the point in the advertisementwhen the noiseoccurred.27Morerecently,Microsoftannouncedtechnology to allowX‐Boxplayers to usevoicecontrolsduringgamingwhichwouldforwardadvertisingmessages to theirfriend’sphoneswhenever marketing promotionswerepresent in the game.2827EBlasshttp://www.engadget.com/2007/04/11/kfc‐ad‐agency‐strikes‐again‐with‐mosquito‐tone‐commercial/28TVega,NewYorkTimes20June2011.Seehttp://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/21/business/media/21xbox.html?_r=2&ref=media18Proposed standards Asnotedearlier, the objective of universal standards is to instituteruleswhichachievemaximumprotectionwhileremainingpractical and economical in application.Althoughitcouldbeproposedthat children shouldnotbeexposed to any marketing, the presentdocumenttakes a ‘risk‐based’approach to reducingexposure to the marketing of food and beverageproductswhoseregularconsumptionisliable to increase the risk of non‐communicablediseases.Furthermore,itisimportant to identifyexamples of high standards for cross‐border marketing whichhavebeenproposedas a result of consensus‐buildingbyreputableagencies,thusindicatingthatsuch standards arefeasible,practical and economical. In thissectionwepropose standards based on a responsibleapproach to marketing on the understandingthat children shouldnotbesubjected to inducements to consumeproductswhich,ifconsumedroutinely,arelikely to bedetrimental to theirhealth.Whereavailableweshowexamples of the use of similar standards in othersectors.Standard1:Specifying the foods and beverages Issue: The promotion of somefoods and beverages canundermine children sdietaryhealth.Proposal:Riskreductionmeanspromotingonlythose food and beverageproductswhichconform to nationaldietaryguidelines and international standards supporting the WHOGlobalStrategy on Diet,PhysicalActivity and Health29. A highstandard: Food and beverages shouldbecategorisedaccording to a validatednutrientprofilingsystem.Examplesmayinclude the UKOfcommodelused to regulateadvertising on television,30 the NordicKeyhole food categorisationmodel,31or the proposalsfrom the USInteragencyWorkingGroup32.Standard2:AgegroupsIssue:Some marketing worksbelowconsciouscontrol.Evenwhen children and adolescentsareaware of marketing, theymaybetrusting and uncritical of the messages.Medialiteracydoesnotreduce marketing messageimpact.Proposal:Riskreductionmeanspromotingonly to thosepersonswhohavereachedanagewhentheyarelegallyconsidered to becompetentenough to protecttheirownwelfare.29WorldHealthOrganization,2004Seehttp://www.who.int/entity/dietphysicalactivity/strategy/eb11344/strategy_english_web.pdf30UKOffice of Communications(Ofcom)2007.Seehttp://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/foodads_new/statement/ and seehttp://collections.europarchive.org/tna/20100927130941/http:/ /food. gov.uk/healthiereating/advertisingtochildren/nutlab/nutprofmod31Seehttp://www.slv.se/en‐gb/Group1 /Food and Nutrition/Keyhole‐symbol/32FederalTradesCommission(2011)InteragencyWorkingGroupSeeksInput on ProposedVoluntaryPrinciples for Marketing Food to Children. Seehttp://www.ftc.gov/opa/2011/04/foodmarket.shtm19Permittedtargetagegroupsshouldbesignificantlyolderthanthis in or...