title: Child-oriented marketing techniques in snack food packages in Guatemala.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Childhood overweight in Guatemala is now becoming a public health concern. Child-oriented marketing contributes to increase children's food preference, purchase and consumption. This study sought to assess the availability of child-oriented snack foods sold in school kiosks and convenience stores near public schools in Guatemala, to identify the marketing techniques used in child-oriented snack food packages and to classify the snacks as "healthy" or "less-healthy".
  
  
  METHODS
  We purchased all child-oriented snacks found in stores inside and within 200 square meters from four schools in an urban community. Snacks were classified as child-oriented if the package had any promotional characters, premium offers, children's television/movie tie-ins, sports references, or the word "child". We used a checklist to assess child-oriented references and price. Snacks were classified as "healthy" or "less-healthy" according to the UK standards for the Nutritional Profiling Model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We analyzed 106 packages found in 55 stores. The most commonly used technique was promotional characters (92.5%) of which 32.7% were brand-specific characters. Premium offers were found in 34% of packages and were mostly collectibles (50%). Most marketing techniques were located on the front and covered nearly 25% of the package surface. Median (interquartile range) price was US$ 0.19 (0.25). Nutrition labels were found in 91 (86%) packages and 41% had a nutrition related health claim. Most snacks (97.1%) were classified as "less-healthy".
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In Guatemala, the food industry targets children through several marketing techniques promoting inexpensive and unhealthy snacks in the school environment. Evidence-based policies restricting the use of promotional characters in unhealthy snack food packages need to be explored as a contributing strategy to control the obesity epidemic.
authors.forename: Violeta
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chacon
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Letona
authors.affiliation: Department of Research, Cardiovascular Surgery Unit of Guatemala, Guatemala City, Guatemala. jbarnoya@post.harvard.edu.
authors.forename: Joaquin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Barnoya
mesh_terms: D057189:Checklist; D002648:Child; D003132:Commerce; D005515:Food Labeling; D006166:Guatemala; D006801:Humans; D040541:Marketing / Q000379:methods*; D063766:Pediatric Obesity; D012574:Schools; D062410:Snacks