Addressing the international focus on diet-related diseases, global business leaders have called on food and beverage companies to go beyond compliance with laws and regulations and to champion a new framework of advertising and marketing principles to encourage responsible food and beverage communications worldwide.

The "Framework for Responsible Food and Beverage Communications" was prepared by representatives from leading international companies and advertising associations from a wide range of countries including the United States, India, Switzerland, Turkey, France, and Bahrain and issued by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC).

Gérard Noël, vice president of the French Advertisers Association (UDA) and chair of the task force that developed the new ICC guidelines, explained: "By communicating through these guidelines, food industry advertisers will contribute to educating consumers on good nutrition, diet and on healthier lifestyles."

A large portion of the ICC framework is devoted to marketing to children, the most educable segment of the consumer population.

"The strength of this framework is that it represents an action-oriented, global business consensus across sectors and borders,” said John Manfredi, senior vice president of the Gillette Company, and Chair of the ICC Commission on Marketing and Advertising as well as the equivalent USCIB committee. "It provides a very clear, uniform interpretation of existing codes that self-regulatory bodies can use to monitor and enforce compliance in the area of food and beverage marketing."

Highlights of the framework include:

- Food and beverage advertisements should not encourage or condone excess consumption. Portion sizes should be appropriate to the setting portrayed.

- All nutritional and health benefit claims for food and beverage products should have a sound scientific basis.

- Scientific terms should not be used to falsely ascribe scientific validity to advertising claims.

- In advertising directed to children, broadcast or print media personalities (live or animated) should not be used in a manner that obscures the distinction between program or editorial content and commercial promotion.

- Food and beverage advertising should not undermine the promotion of healthy lifestyles.