CFBAI and CCAI Published the 2020 Annual Report on Participant Compliance and Program Progress

Dec 21, 2021 by Maureen Enright, Vice President, CFBAI and CCAI, BBB National Programs

BBB National Programs has released the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI) and Children’s Confection Advertising Initiative (CCAI) 2020 Annual Report, which includes findings on CFBAI and CCAI participant compliance with their commitment to advertise only foods that meet CFBAI’s strict Uniform Nutrition Criteria or to not engage in advertising primarily directed to children under age 12. The Report indicates excellent compliance by the 19 CFBAI participants and the eight CCAI participants in 2020.  

In addition to participant compliance, the report details CFBAI’s revised Core Principles and modifications made to these Principles in 2020 and 2021 in response to the evolving media landscape. These enhancements more strictly define what constitutes a child-directed audience and formally expand digital media coverage to cover child-directed ads on platforms like YouTube and child-directed influencer communications.  

The report also summarizes the nutritional contribution of foods added to CFBAI’s Product List (a list of foods that participants may advertise to children) and the results of CFBAI’s evaluation of food and beverage ads on children’s TV networks in 2021. This evaluation found that CFBAI participants accounted for about 75% of the ads and that most of the ads were for nutrient-dense foods that positively contribute to children’s diets. Among non-participants, candy and restaurant ads were the most advertised categories in the evaluation. 

For nearly 15 years, CFBAI and CCAI have been focused on ensuring that foods in ads directed to children meet strict nutrition criteria. CFBAI welcomes non-participant restaurant and confectionery companies to join current program participants in that work. BBB National Programs is proud to continue to collaborate with participating food, beverage, and restaurant companies to help improve the children’s food advertising landscape. 

Learn more about CFBAI and CCAI, or access the full 2020 Annual Report. 

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