Marketing of sugar-sweetened beverages to youth through U.S. university pouring rights contracts

Highlights

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  Coca-Cola, Pepsi, and Gatorade partner with universities to market beverages.

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  16% of university beverage contracts targeted marketing at youth under 18 years old.

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  Nearly all youth-targeted beverage marketing was tied to university athletics.

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  Contracts noted that they may be affected by laws limiting advertising to children.

Abstract

Child-targeted marketing can influence children’s food preferences and childhood consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is associated with negative health outcomes in both childhood and adulthood. This study explores how beverage companies are using pouring rights contracts (PRCs) with U.S. public universities to market SSBs to youth under 18 years of age.

We obtained 139 PRCs (64 Coca-Cola, 67 Pepsi, 8 Gatorade) from 132 universities between June 2019 and August 2020. Each contract was coded by two reviewers who extracted quotes relevant to youth-targeted marketing activities.

Twenty-two contracts in our sample (16%) contained a total of 25 provisions related to youth-targeted marketing. Nearly all youth-targeted marketing provisions (n = 24 of 25) were tied to university athletics. Most provisions (n = 19) described the marketing of specific beverages or involved the use of brand names that are also beverages (e.g., “Gatorade,” “Coca-Cola”). Fifteen contracts included advertising or support for youth summer camps; five contracts allowed the beverage company to sponsor free experiences for children at university athletic events; three contracts allowed advertising at high school athletic events hosted at university facilities; and two contracts established programs for “underprivileged” or “disadvantaged” youth. Five contracts acknowledged that their provisions may be affected by laws or self-regulatory policies that limit advertising to children.

Beverage companies should reconsider marketing to youth through PRCs, universities should carefully consider PRCs with youth-targeted provisions, and the government should further regulate and prevent youth-targeted marketing.