A student sips a sugary drink outside his school in Phnom Penh’s Meanchey district in 2021. Hong Menea
UNICEF in Cambodia has warned that an excess of advertisements for junk food which target children are having a devastating effect on their health.
This is not only encouraging them to eat unhealthy food, but putting them at risk of obesity and chronic diseases, it added.
A March 4 social media post by the UN agency said the East Asia and Pacific region is known for its vibrant and colourful dishes, bursting with flavour and full of fresh and healthy ingredients. Sadly, children today are growing up in an environment where traditional diets based on nutritious and fresh foods are increasingly being replaced with highly processed food and drink.
“Because junk foods and drinks are high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats but low in essential nutrients like vitamins and minerals, this shift has a devastating impact on children’s health and well-being,” it said.
“Food companies are bombarding our kids with junk food ads every day. This is making them eat more unhealthy food and putting them at risk of obesity and chronic diseases,” it added.
The organisation said it will continue to work with the government and its partners to identify actions that will support the right of every child to a healthy diet, and will push for the introduction of new policies that will counter the increased marketing of unhealthy foods and drinks.
The Ministry of Commerce said it has placed a high priority on this issue, and is running public educational campaigns while sharing information about food safety at schools.
Its undersecretary of state Kim Meas Sok Seiha reiterated on March 5 that the ministry is paying close attention to the advertising of junk food, especially to children, acknowledging that the excess consumption of junk food will lead to an increased risk of chronic diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure.
“The ministry and other relevant state institutions have introduced several measures to reduce these problems, through the General Directorate of Consumer Protection, Competition and Fraud Repression [CCF],” he explained.
The CCF regularly raises awareness about food safety to schools in the capital and provinces across the country, while its officials analyse and test foods on campuses which are suspected to be of poor quality or unsafe, according to the official.
“As for advertising, the CCF examines all text, pictures and video ads, especially for sweet foods. We do not allow them to target children or young people. We are very thorough,” he said.
Meas Sok Seiha requested that parents and guardians instruct their children about the importance of a healthy diet, noting that the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport has banned the sale of sweet drinks and fatty foods on school campuses.
“We will continue to educate people about food safety, but we cannot prohibit the advertising of sweets or fatty foods. As long as they are hygienic, they are legal,” he added.
According to a new study by UNICEF and the Consortium for Improving Complementary Foods in Southeast Asia (COMMIT), 72 per cent of snacks and ready-to-eat meals for children under 3 in seven Southeast Asian countries, including Cambodia, contain added sugar, which can lead to tooth decay and weight gain in children, as well as poor eating habits in later life.
In addition, nearly 90 per cent of labels on the products studied included potentially misleading or deceptive claims about their composition, it added.
The study claimed that none of the seven countries have introduced national policies on the composition and labelling of commercially produced complementary foods which meet international standards.
