WHO’s Guidelines on Marketing Food to Children + Monster Eyes Bang Energy – Xtalks Life Food Podcast Ep. 118

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently released new guidelines that emphasized the critical role that marketers must play in safeguarding children’s health. In this episode of the Xtalks Food Podcast, Sydney talks about these new guidelines, which underscored the need for tighter regulations to protect children from the adverse effects of food marketing. The marketing of food products that are high in saturated and trans fats, free sugars and/or salt, known as HFSS, has been a subject of debate. The WHO’s research indicates that such advertising can shape children’s dietary preferences, promote unhealthy food intake and pave the way for potential health issues like obesity and heart disease. The WHO’s new guidelines recommend compulsory regulation on marketing HFSS foods and non-alcoholic beverages, underscoring that previous voluntary measures have been inadequate. The team wonders how much of an impact food marketing has on children and discuss how drastically media and advertising has changed in the last decade.

Also in this episode, Sydney talks about Monster Energy’s is potential acquisition of its smaller rival, Bang Energy, for $362 million through a bankruptcy court agreement. This transaction is pending approval from the bankruptcy court and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which is currently reviewing the potential sale; however, if given the green light, this deal could potentially be beneficial for both brands. However, the relationship between Bang and Monster has been marked by heated competition ever since Bang entered the market in 2012, ten years after Monster’s establishment. In September 2022, Bang suffered a significant setback when Monster filed a successful false advertising lawsuit against it. Moreover, Monster holds a substantial claim in Bang’s bankruptcy as one of its largest creditors. The team wonders whether Monster, which sued Bang less than a year ago, is making a hypocritical decision by acquiring Bang, or whether it’s a savvy business decision given Bang’s financial success.