| Comment Number: | 516960-00002 |
| Received: | 6/3/2005 9:53:17 PM |
| Organization: | |
| Commenter: | Elva Yanez |
| State: | CA |
| Agency: | Federal Trade Commission |
| Rule: | Food Marketing to Kids Workshop |
| Docket ID: | To Be Added |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
June 3, 2005 Federal Trade Commission/Office of the Secretary, Room 159-H (Annex H) 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20580 Re: Food Marketing to Kids Workshop -- Comment Project No. P034519 Dear Sir or Madam: I am submitting these comments to the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Health and Human Services in response to the announcement regarding the Food Marketing to Kids Workshop and the self-regulatory marketing initiatives in the food and beverage industry that respond to concerns about childhood obesity. I am public health specialist and currently work on a community-based policy initiative that focuses on increasing park and other physical activity venues to address the obesity and overweight epidemic in low-income communities of color of Los Angeles County. Previously, I worked for eight years helping communities enact local policies to regulate smoking in workplaces, including restaurants and bars. Prior to that I worked on local alcohol policies regulating placement of alcohol outlets and advertising. It is imperative that the federal government looks to the relevant empirical evidence from the tobacco and alcohol policy arenas when considering regulation of food industry marketing to children in response to concerns about childhood obesity. As the FTC and DHHS are fully aware, self-regulation of marketing by the tobacco and alcoholic beverage industries has done nothing to prevent underage smoking or drinking which culminates in 500,000+ annual deaths caused by these legal products in the United States. In fact, there is ample evidence—including industry documents—that the tobacco and alcoholic beverage industries have spent millions of dollars to undermine the most effective disease prevention strategies available: local, state and federal policies to regulate these legal products. There is too much profit at stake for the food industry to be able to objectively self-regulate its marketing practices to children. Likewise, the economic burden resulting from the obesity epidemic makes it irresponsible for the federal government to allow industry self-regulation of food marketing practices. Comprehensive and effective government regulation of food marketing now will help stem the obesity and overweight epidemic in the future in a cost-effective manner. Such regulation will prevent further erosion of the health care infrastructure in the U.S. as a result of excessive burden on Medicare and other government sponsored health care programs. In closing, I urge the federal government to take strong, effective action to regulate the food industry’s marketing of children. Moreover, the food industry should not be involved in any related regulatory bodies or advisory groups. Further, any federal regulations should not preempt state or local governments from taking stronger action to regulate food marketing practices at the community level. Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this matter. Sincerely, Elva Yanez