An increasing number of children and adults worldwide are overweight or obese. This concerning situation has prompted Norway to respond with an important countermeasure. Advertising and marketing of unhealthy foods targeted at children under 18 years of age are now prohibited.

Text: Dietmar Schobel

Unhealthy products with a high proportion of saturated fatty acids, trans-fatty acids, added sugars or salt bring in huge profits for food giants around the world, and a large part of their turnover is spent on advertising and marketing. For the companies, this pays off – specifically when advertising is targeted at children. “Children are powerless to resist marketing by food giants. Numerous studies also prove that this is detrimental to their health,” says medical professional Cathrine Marie Lofthus, Director General of the Directorate of Health in Norway – the “Helsedirektoratet” – which has around 850 employees.

Consequently, Norwegian public health experts backed a ban on the marketing of unhealthy foods and drinks to children – and they were successful. In October 2025, corresponding legislation came into force that is now one of the strictest, if not the strictest, of its kind worldwide:

*       The ban covers all children and adolescents up to the age of 18 years.

*       It applies to traditional media such as posters, print newspapers, radio and TV as well as digital media and specifically social media.

*       Strategies such as sponsorship, influencer marketing, product placement and indirect branding practices are also included,

*       and the new rules are legally binding.

Fines introduced from 2027

The Norwegian Directorate of Health monitors compliance with the legislation, and its initial evaluation is due to be completed by late 2026. According to the Helsedirektoratet Director General, preliminary results are expected to yield “positive effects”. Additionally, from the beginning of 2027, companies that fail to abide by the new regulations face heavy fines. These can be up to 4 percent of a company’s annual turnover or up to 20 times the Norwegian National Insurance basic amount, whichever is higher. The National Insurance basic amount, called “grunnbeløp” or “G” for short, is a reference figure for all social services in Norway such as pensions, sickness pay and unemployment benefits. It is currently set at 136,549 Norwegian krone, which is around 12,500 euros.

Children are powerless to resist marketing by food giants.

CATHRINE MARIE LOFTHUS, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE DIRECTORATE OF HEALTH IN NORWAY

Norway’s new law applies to products in 10 categories. Categories 1 to 5 include chocolate and sugar confectionery, cakes and pastries, snacks, edible ices and soft drinks – all products in these categories are banned from being marketed to children. Categories 6 to 10 include juices, milk drinks, breakfast cereals, yoghurt products and fast food. These are subject to nutrient thresholds, and marketing is prohibited if products exceed defined limits on added sugars, saturated fat, salt or energy content. The ban is supported by 3 out of 4 Norwegians, as shown in a survey by market research and opinion polling company Norstat in the spring of 2025.

A never-ending epidemic

It is well known that the consumption of too many foods with a high proportion of added sugars, saturated fat, salt or energy can cause overweight and obesity. This in turn can result in illnesses such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and several types of cancer. Back in 1997, the World Health Organization (WHO) already warned against the “global epidemic of obesity”. But it has not yet been possible to turn the tide. Quite the opposite: the numbers are rising.

According to WHO/Europe, overweight and obesity are currently linked to more than 1.2 million deaths each year across the WHO European Region. 1 in 4 children aged 7 to 9 years are overweight or obese – in Norway it is more than 1 in 5 children. “Norway’s new legislation is a bold, evidence-based step to change that reality. I hope this example will encourage other countries to take similar action,” WHO Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge remarked in a press release from March 2026.

A patient approach to success

Initial efforts to limit such advertising and marketing for children and adolescents in Norway were made as many as twenty years ago. Cathrine Marie Lofthus reports: “For over a decade, we also attempted to implement rules that expected food suppliers to respond voluntarily. But that didn’t work satisfactorily. In addition, the voluntary scheme had an age limit of 13 years.” She continues: “And implementing mandatory regulations has required a lot of patience and persistence.”

Ultimately, this new legislation in Norway implements the central measures outlined in the Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion from 1986. These are an important step in the development of healthy public policies and supportive environments, where the healthy choice is the easy choice. “Further steps are expected to follow,” says Cathrine Marie Lofthus. “These include a ban on the advertising and marketing of unhealthy products to adults.”

POLICIES TO PROTECT CHILDREN

In the guideline “Policies to protect children from the harmful impact of food marketing” from 2023, the World Health Organization (WHO) makes the following “conditional recommendation”:

WHO suggests implementation of policies to restrict marketing of foods high in saturated fatty acids, trans-fatty acids, free sugars and/or salt to which children are exposed, and that such policies:

*       be mandatory

*       protect children of all ages

*       use a government-led nutrient profile model to classify foods to be restricted from marketing

*       be sufficiently comprehensive to minimise the risk of migration of marketing to other media, to other spaces within the same medium or to other age groups

*       and restrict the power of food marketing to persuade.

Source: Policies to protect children from the harmful impact of food marketing: WHO guideline. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2023.