Ad-blocking bill a healthy idea

An editorial from the Winnipeg Free Press:

Parents are all too familiar with lobbying from the rear seats of the minivan as their beloved offspring plead for a visit to a favourite fast-food restaurant.

It’s called “pester power,” and it’s also employed in savvy marketing techniques aimed at the impressionable minds of children, whose choice of dining establishment can be dictated by the lure of obtaining a chintzy toy replicating characters from Despicable Me or My Little Pony.

To the relief of parents everywhere, the marketing of food and drink aimed at children less than 13 years old could soon be prohibited throughout Canada.

The legislation got second reading in the House, and it appears to have support even from the big office of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The legislation is driven by concerns that the number of obese children in Canada has tripled since 1980.

Granted, the upcoming restriction on marketing to children is not without critics. A concern raised in the House noted that the purveyors of food and drink that are classified as unhealthy often sponsor amateur sports teams. For example, will this legislation block the Timbits minor-sports program that benefits 300,000 kids?

A second concern, as brought forward by the food industry, is that the proposed legislation doesn’t define “unhealthy food.”

While details of the legislation might be challenging to compose, it’s important legislators keep their focus on the main goal: it’s about the kids.