Study finds 66% of Australians want junk food ads banned, but there’s a silver lining for small business advertisers

Two in three Australians agree that junk food advertising should be banned during children’s viewing hours, according to an Australia Institute study released on Monday.

The Australia Institute surveyed 1003 Australians about whether the advertising of certain controversial products should be permitted on television, with the results showing the majority of Australians agree that junk food, gambling, alcohol and tobacco advertising on TV should be banned.

According to the National Obesity Strategy 2022 — 2032 released in March this year, more than $550 million is spent annually by food companies on advertising food and non-alcoholic drinks in Australia, with the majority of promoted products high in fat, sugar and salt.

The 10-year framework, which aims to prevent, reduce, and treat, overweight and obesity in Australia by 2032, also states that the fast food and takeaway services industries are dominated by large businesses in Australia, which made $16.9 billion in 2019–20.

The push to limit junk food advertising could be a sign of better things to come for small business advertisers who wouldn’t have to compete with larger corporations with bigger advertising budgets.

There are 2.4 million small and medium-sized businesses in Australia, and according to the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, small businesses make up over 97% of all businesses in Australia.

Australia Institute executive director Dr Richard Denniss says the results show the community backs public health experts in supporting greater protection for children from the junk food industry.

“A company like McDonald’s is an advertising heavyweight, with its ad budget ballooning to over $83 million each year. The clear majority of Australians want greater protection for our kids and their health,” he said in a statement. 

“Results also show Australians have had enough of the gambling industry saturating our airwaves with messages enticing us to bet.

“The majority view was clear on both junk food and gambling, across all voting intentions — give these ads the punt.

“While community concern with adverting by alcohol and fossil fuel companies is not as high as it is for junk food and gambling, far more Australians support restrictions on alcohol and fossil fuel advertising than oppose them.”

Independent Member for Mackellar and former Sydney GP Dr Sophie Scamps has also joined the call to ban junk food advertising to children during prime-time television hours, revealing her plans to draft a private members bill to introduce in Australian parliament next year to support the regulating of junk food on TV.

“Advertising that targets children — during the times when children are watching TV, at their sporting events — all those things need to be looked at. They can be changed,” Scamps said.