Students targets of ‘marketing tool’

REDBRANCH, a not-for-profit consultancy which provides healthy eating and lifestyle seminars to primary school children, has accused the country’s soft drink lobbyists of attempting to blatantly market their products in the classroom.

The Liquids4life website has been developed by the Beverage Council of Ireland (BCI) who sought advice from the Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) on developing the site.

In recent weeks, principals were sent a mailshot from the BCI offering the site as a resource during SPHE (Social Personal and Health Education).

According to RedBranch director David Egan, the website is a “means of circumventing” a BCI commitment to the Union of European Beverage Association that it would no longer engage in print, website or TV marketing specifically aimed at children.

“The site is a thinly disguised marketing tool for the soft drinks industry, placing sugar laden fizzy drinks in the same category as water as a source of fluids. We think that this site is an insidious way of promoting unhealthy soft drink consumption in children.

“Nowhere on the website are children advised that soft drinks should only be consumed occasionally. The site also includes a downloadable drinks diary which reminds children to drink at least six-eight cups of liquid per day. Conveniently it does not warn children that soft drinks should only be consumed very occasionally,” he said.

An INTO spokesman said yesterday they were asked their “professional opinion” on the website and commented on design and the strong need for a balanced approach. They said they haven’t endorsed the site.

“Even though the need to drink soft drinks in moderation is not made explicitly on the site, we believe the website can be used by teachers to put the message out that soft drink consumption should be monitored. That is how we would use the ‘drinks diary’ in the classroom. Such sites will never take over from the curriculum,” he added.

BCI executive director Bernard Murphy said he is astonished anyone could take issue with the website as no particular brands of drinks are mentioned.

“We haven’t received any negative criticism from teachers or RedBranch to date. This isn’t backdoor marketing to avoid codes of practice. It is completely by the rulebook. We got independent nutritional advice and consulted with teachers as well as getting a school mailing list from the Department of Education,” he said.

“There is an unbranded website and all references to drinks are very generic. The website is fun and informative. We liaised with the INTO ... and we have offered it to them as a resource for SPHE We engaged in it as part of our policy on Corporate and Social Responsibility policy,” he added.