Clearance for Responsible Advertising of Food and Beverage Products to Children

Ad Standards Clearance Services is charged by industry with the important responsibility of reviewing and approving all advertising messages for food and beverages in any media that might reasonably be seen as primarily directed to children to ensure compliance with the provisions of  Code for the Responsible Advertising of Food and Beverage Products to Children and the Guide for the Responsible Advertising of Food and Beverage Products to Children (the Code and Guide).

Under this national standard, developed by industry to establish a responsible approach to child audiences, only food and beverages that meet specified nutrition criteria may be advertised in a manner that is primarily directed to children under the age of 13. Ad Standards’ analysts review advertising to determine whether or not an ad is primarily directed to children according to the criteria established in the Code and Guide.

Each script, post, or other piece of creative is reviewed by two analysts at Ad Standards for thoroughness and consistency. Preclearance by Ad Standards, as an independent third party, provides advertisers with assurance that an ad is not child-directed under the Code or, where it is, that it may do so responsibly and only for permitted products.

Ad Standards Clearance Services also offers consultation services for new product launches, new advertising concepts, sponsorship campaigns as well as charitable initiatives and educational campaigns. Review services are offered in both English and French and are done by clearance analysts who are experts in their respective disciplines.

Working collaboratively with clients, Ad Standards Clearance Services can help ensure your advertising meets these self-regulatory requirements and receives an Ad Standards approval number. The clearance number communicates to private and public media companies that the copy has been approved for compliance with the Code and Guide.

In addition, industry has asked Ad Standards to enforce compliance with the Code and Guide, which will be done through a complaints-based process. For complaints related to an advertisement that has been precleared by Ad Standards Clearance Services, the complainant will be advised that the ad is compliant and no further action will be taken.

In order to obtain approval under Food Advertising and/or Children’s Advertising, you will be required to submit separate preclearance requests for each preclearance area.