Examining public support for food marketing policy among adults in Canada

Public support influences policy adoption and implementation. This study aimed to examine public opinion towards government restrictions on unhealthy food marketing to children among adults in Canada. A cross-sectional online survey was completed by 3,688 Canadian adults in 2024. Parents/guardians of children <18 years (n=938) were asked how concerned they are about children’s exposure to unhealthy food marketing, and public opinion towards restrictions on unhealthy food marketing in several media/settings was examined. Multinomial logistic regression models examined sociodemographic differences in policy support. Most parents/guardians (83.6%) reported some level of concern about their child(ren)’s exposure to unhealthy food marketing. Among the total sample (n=3,688), 56.6% of participants reported supporting a ban on unhealthy food marketing to children, and many reported supporting bans on unhealthy food marketing online (45.1%), on TV before 9 pm (47.8%), in outdoor settings (44.7%), and via child-appealing product packaging (52.4%). Participants aged ≥60 years (AOR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.06, 2.26) and those with high perceived income adequacy (AOR: 2.07; 95% CI: 1.40, 3.06) had greater odds of being supportive of a ban on advertising unhealthy foods to children. For bans on unhealthy food marketing in specific media/settings, participants who were female, older, identifying as the ethnic majority, highly educated and Quebec residents often had higher odds of supporting restrictions on unhealthy food marketing to children, with differences between media/settings. Approximately half of Canadian adults support government restrictions on unhealthy food marketing, with some differences between sociodemographic groups and media/settings. Findings suggest minimal public opposition to marketing restrictions.