Piggin & coll. (2019)_Do the Olympic Games promote dietary health for spectators?.pdf (original) (raw)
Related papers
International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics, 2016
From a public health perspective, there are growing concerns about the commercial arrangements between sports events and companies which sell ultra-processed food and drink. In particular, companies are accused of connecting products that are perceived as unhealthy with sport and physical activity that is perceived as healthy. This study examined the tensions and conflicts between health promotion policy and the marketing and consumption reality at the 2016 European Championship football tournament in France. This study is informed theoretically by a critical, political economy lens. Discourse analysis, semiotic analysis, venue analysis and participant observation were employed to gather data from relevant policy and event management plans, sponsor advertisements, site architecture, food and drink offerings and displays at stadia and fan zones. These sources were assessed for the way they encouraged healthy or unhealthy consumption behaviours. The analysis found that the health advice promoted by the French government and the tournament owners (Union of European Football Associations) differed markedly from the reality at the points of consumption. Unhealthy products dominated inside the stadia and fan zones sampled. In many instances, there were little or no healthy foods on display for customers. Despite a self-proclaimed status as having ‘healthy stadia’, a limited vision of health at Euro 2016 was promoted, which was largely restricted to the attempted provision of smoke-free spaces. This raises questions for sport mega events which are in receipt of public funding and which claim to promote health. This study encourages policy-makers, sports funders and consumers to critically evaluate health claims made by sport events and sponsors.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF SPORT POLICY AND POLITICS, 2017
From a public health perspective, there are growing concerns about the commercial arrangements between sports events and companies which sell ultra-processed food and drink. In particular, companies are accused of connecting products that are perceived as unhealthy with sport and physical activity that is perceived as healthy. This study examined the tensions and conflicts between health promotion policy and the market- ing and consumption reality at the 2016 European Championship foot- ball tournament in France. This study is informed theoretically by a critical, political economy lens. Discourse analysis, semiotic analysis, venue analysis and participant observation were employed to gather data from relevant policy and event management plans, sponsor adver- tisements, site architecture, food and drink offerings and displays at stadia and fan zones. These sources were assessed for the way they encouraged healthy or unhealthy consumption behaviours. The analysis found that the health advice promoted by the French government and the tournament owners (Union of European Football Associations) dif- fered markedly from the reality at the points of consumption. Unhealthy products dominated inside the stadia and fan zones sampled. In many instances, there were little or no healthy foods on display for customers. Despite a self-proclaimed status as having ‘healthy stadia’, a limited vision of health at Euro 2016 was promoted, which was largely restricted to the attempted provision of smoke-free spaces. This raises questions for sport mega events which are in receipt of public funding and which claim to promote health. This study encourages policy-makers, sports funders and consumers to critically evaluate health claims made by sport events and sponsors.
Using sport as a tool to market unhealthy food
This paper is focused on how unhealthy food and drinks companies sponsor sports athletes, teams and events as a means of promoting their brands. Currently, across many sports, there is evidence of unhealthy food and drink sponsors. From a business perspective, sport provides an ideal platform to influence the public into forming positive attitudes towards their brands. Sport also provides companies with an opportunity to target and penetrate new and unexplored markets. The objective of this paper is to highlight this contradictory association that ethically needs reviewing. Within this paper it is argued that due to the potential impacts of developing inaccurate attitudes of unhealthy food and drinks companies, sports governing bodies can and should make a stance against allowing these brands to be aligned with a healthy life pursuit.
Healthy Sport Consumption: Moving Away from Pies and Beer
Sport and Health: The Current State of Play, 2017
When attending a sports match, food and alcohol have been identified as the primary purchases of sports fans (Jones, 2002) but, as noted by Carter et al. (2012), there is little academic research into the actual offerings in stadiums and, therefore, discussions of food and drink within them remain largely anecdotal. Nevertheless, stadium food has a reputation for being of poor quality and is a point of frustration for many fans (see Figure 1). Although it is difficult to find a definition of healthy eating options, the World Health Organisation highlights those foods that are low in fat, sugars and cholesterol (WHO, 2015). The food available in stadiums has been typically high in saturated fat, sugars, and sodium and would, therefore, be conventionally considered to be unhealthy. Although the European Healthy Stadia Network has called for healthier food options in stadiums (as part of a settings-based approach to health promotion (Martin et al., 2016)), there is yet to be a significant change in many European (and Australian) venues. This chapter explores the role of food and drink in the Australian sporting experience and highlights issues surrounding the quality and price of stadium food and drink. It begins with a brief contextualisation of the modern Australian sporting experience and recent shifts towards the mediated consumption of sport (Rowe, 2004).
BMC Public Health, 2013
Background: High participation rates in sport and increasing recognition of how diet benefits athletic performance suggest sports settings may be ideal locations for promoting healthy eating. While research has demonstrated the effect of tobacco and alcohol sponsorship on consumption, particularly among youth, few studies have examined the extent or impact of food and beverage company sponsorship in sport. Studies using brand logos as a measure suggest unhealthy foods and beverages dominate sports sponsorship. However, as marketing goes beyond the use of brand livery, research examining how marketers support sponsorships that create brand associations encouraging consumer purchase is also required. This study aimed to identify the characteristics and extent of sponsorships and associated marketing by food and non-alcoholic beverage brands and companies through a case study of New Zealand sport. Methods: We conducted a systematic review of 308 websites of national and regional New Zealand sporting organisations to identify food and beverage sponsors, which were then classified as healthy or unhealthy using nutrient criteria for energy, fat, sodium and fibre levels. We interviewed 18 key informants from national and regional sporting organisations about sponsorships.
Promoting healthy eating in the community sport setting: a scoping review
Health Promotion International, 2021
Summary Community sport organizations promote beneficial health outcomes such as social connection and physical activity, yet they can also facilitate the consumption of unhealthy food and beverages. To provide a foundation for future research and to inform intervention efforts in this context, this scoping review summarizes existing knowledge of the factors that contribute to unhealthy food and beverage consumption in the community sport setting and explores the interventions to promote healthier choices. Using a qualitative process aligned with the nature of our aims, 228 articles were initially identified and subjected to a systemized appraisal, resulting in 45 articles pertinent to the review. The findings identify that the two key factors contributing to unhealthy food choices are the limited availability of healthy options within the sport setting and the presence of unhealthy food and beverage sponsorship. These factors contribute to the normalization of unhealthy eating in t...
Commercial determinants of health: advertising of alcohol and unhealthy foods during sporting events
Bulletin of the World Health Organization
Tobacco, alcohol and foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar generate much of the global burden of noncommunicable diseases. We therefore need a better understanding of how these products are promoted. The promotion of tobacco products through sporting events has largely disappeared over the last two decades, but advertising and sponsorship continues by companies selling alcohol, unhealthy food and sugar-sweetened beverage. The sponsorship of sporting events such as the Olympic Games, the men's FIFA World Cup and the men's European Football Championships in 2016, has received some attention in recent years in the public health literature. Meanwhile, British football and the English Premier League have become global events with which transnational companies are keen to be associated, to promote their brands to international markets. Despite its reach, the English Premier League marketing and sponsorship portfolio has received very little scrutiny from public health advocates. We call for policy-makers and the public health community to formulate an approach to the sponsorship of sporting events, one that accounts for public health concerns.
Public Health Nutrition, 2020
Objective: To explore parents’ responses to sponsorship of children’s sport by unhealthy food brands and two alternative pro-health sponsorship options. Design: Between-subjects online experiment with four sponsorship conditions: (i) non-food branding (control); (ii) unhealthy food branding; (iii) healthier food branding; (iv) public health nutrition campaign branding. Participants were shown a short video and a promotional flyer for a fictional junior sports programme, with sponsor content representing their assigned brand. Afterwards, participants were asked a series of questions assessing their brand awareness, brand attitudes and preference for food sponsor branded products. Setting: Australia. Participants: Australian parents (n 1331) of children aged 6–9 years. Results: Compared with the control condition, unhealthy food sponsorship promoted increased awareness, branded product preferences and favourable attitudes towards unhealthy food sponsor brands. Healthier food sponsorsh...