Mars Leads UK Anti-obesity Drive
10 August 2008 - United Kingdom
Mars has taken a leading role in a UK Government sponsored anti-obesity initiative called 'Change 4 Life'.
The company, which is credited as having initiated the proposal, has joined forces with other food businesses - including Cadbury, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Kraft, Nestlé, the UK's biggest supermarket Tesco, TV companies such as ITV and BSkyB, plus advertising agency AMV BBDO and more - to launch the biggest anti-obesity marketing campaign seen in Britain, in a move intended to project a more proactive, industry approach to tackling health problems.
The coalition of food, soft drink, fitness and broadcasting companies is to contribute £200m in cash and 'in-kind' donations, such as free air time, that will hit television screens and other media in early 2009. Specific company commitments are still in the planning stages. However, Mars is likely to re-brand future health and fitness initiatives, similar to the company's Mars Balls Get Britain Playing and the Dolmio Health Challenge under the 4 Life campaign.
The campaign will continue in some form until the London 2012 Olympics.
"As an originator of this campaign, Mars is keen to take an active role in ensuring the company's support of 'Change 4 Life' has a significant impact on tackling obesity and truly changing consumer behavior," said Alison Clark, Director of Corporate Communications.
In a speech at the Fabian Society last Wednesday, UK health secretary Alan Johnson also told members: "Just as the Government has a moral duty to tackle poverty and exclusion, so it also has a duty to address obesity. But this is not a license to lecture people on how they should spend their lives; tackling obesity requires a much broader partnership, not only with families, but with employers, retailers, the leisure industry, the media, local government and the voluntary sector."
The Advertising Association, whose chief executive, Baroness Peta Buscombe, is spearheading the campaign, has spent almost a year getting major advertisers on board and acting as the crucial interface with the British Government. Both the Department of Health and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport are supportive of the industry coalition, and Prime Minister Gordon Brown gave it his blessing at a meeting with Baroness Buscombe two weeks ago.
"The industry has been brilliant at selling others' products but not at selling itself," Buscombe said. "This is the perfect way to demonstrate the popularity of advertising."