Targeting minority kids: A cross-disciplinary approach to regulating harmful marketing

Junk food marketing to children has become such a major problem that virtually every major health professional organization has called on the food industry to curb its harmful practices. Meanwhile, rates of obesity and chronic disease are rising, and disproportionately so among children within racial and ethnic minority groups. The alcohol and tobacco industries have a sordid history of targeting such populations. Likewise, alcohol and tobacco control advocates have much experience to share in legal and policy strategies to address industry's harmful marketing practices.

This innovative, cross-disciplinary panel of experienced public health lawyers will discuss: 1) how the food industry targets minority children and the application of local regulatory controls; 2) lessens learned from the tobacco and alcohol control movements to help inform nutrition advocates; 3) ideas for how alcohol, tobacco, and nutrition advocates can work together to forge solutions that address all three problems in communities to promote public health in a more strategic and effective manner.