UK Advertising Watchdog Censures Kellogg’s for Sugar Claims

The U.K.’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has censured Kellogg
Marketing and Sales Co. (UK), Ltd. for falsely claiming on its website, in
relation to promotions for children’s breakfast cereals, that “A panel of world
health experts recently reviewed all the scientific evidence and concluded
that a high sugar intake is not related to obesity, or the development of
diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure or cancer.”

ASA acknowledged that Kellogg’s had based the claim on “credible scientific
evidence and review,” but noted that the company’s wording, without qualifiers,
did not account for contrary evidence and “implied there was absolute
certainty about the claims being made,” which is not the case. Because
Kellogg’s had “referred in particular to a high sugar intake,” ASA concluded
that the claim was misleading given the number of authoritative government
cautions about limiting the quantity of sugary foods consumed. The company
apparently assured the authority that it would remove the claims from its website.