Food Advertising to Children at FAST-FOOD and FAMILY RESTAURANTS

Food Advertising to Children AT FAST-FOOD AND FAMILY RESTAURANTS

Publicité alimentaire aux enfants DANS LES RESTAURANTS RAPIDES ET FAMILIAUX

Foreword This report was produced by the Quebec Coalition on Weight-Related Problems (Weight Coalition), and outlines advertising strategies aimed at children under the age of 13 in Quebec. It is part of a series of four documents that presents an overview of food advertising directed at children in the food retail sector, fast-food and family restaurants, as well as family venues and events.

A Review of Food Advertising to Food Advertising to Children in Food Advertising to Children at Children in Quebec the Food Retail Sector Family Venues and Events

Information contained in the document may be cited provided that the source is mentioned. © Quebec Coalition on Weight-Related Problems (2019)

Quebec Coalition on Weight-Related Problems The mandate of the Quebec Coalition on Weight-Related Problems (Weight Coalition), an initiative sponsored by the Association pour la santé publique du Québec, is to advocate for legislative, regulatory and public policy changes in an effort to foster the creation of healthy lifestyle-promoting environments that help prevent weight problems and chronic conditions.

The Weight Coalition has the support of more than 550 partners from the education, municipal, health, research, environment, nutrition and physical activity sectors.

4529 Clark Street, Suite 102 Montréal, Quebec H2T 2T3 Tel. : 514 598-8058 [email protected] | cqpp.qc.ca twitter.com/CoalitionPoids facebook.com/CoalitionPoids

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Table of Contents

Introduction ...... 3 Documenting Advertising to Children in Restaurants ...... 3 Menu Appearance ...... 4 Fast-Food Restaurants ...... 5 Children’s Menu ...... 5 Menu Content ...... 7 Family Restaurants ...... 9 Children’s Menu ...... 9 Menu Content ...... 11 Meal Presentation ...... 13 Fun Packages ...... 13 Toys ...... 16 Summary of Related Practices ...... 18 In-restaurant Promotion ...... 19 Fast-Food Restaurants ...... 20 Family Restaurants ...... 22 Brand Characters...... 23 Websites ...... 24 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 30 Appendix ………………………………………………..……………………………….……………………………………. 31 References ...... 98

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Introduction Restaurants use several strategies to attract children’s attention and create a feeling of belonging and loyalty. Many use a marketing mix. These strategies help to make young consumers loyal to a brand, and it works: 93% of children aged 3 to 5 recognize the McDonald’s logo even before they can read.1 The following overview shows the marketing practices used to attract children to the main fast-food and family restaurant chains in Quebec. A few examples of different strategies are presented, but the entire set of photographs taken in the restaurants is available in the Appendix.

Documenting Advertising to Children in Restaurants Between February and April 2019, a total of 20 restaurant chains and their websites were visited. Data was collected from at least one restaurant from each chain. Observation charts were created and completed for systematic information compilation. Our observations focused on menu appearance, meal presentation and promotional signage (e.g., advertising posters including meals and any other product offered throughout the restaurant). Food offers to children were also examined. Once the data was collected, to facilitate the identification and analysis of the marketing strategies used, the restaurants were divided into the following three categories:

 fast-food restaurants: the client orders and pays before eating.2  family restaurants: full-service restaurants.3  both models: restaurants offering the fast-food and/or family restaurant formula, depending on the business.

The following table classifies the restaurants visited based on the categories identified. Fast-food restaurants visited Family restaurants visited • A&W • Boston Pizza • Benny & Co.* • Cage aux sports • Burger King • Cora • Dominos • Mikes • Harvey’s • Normandin • La Belle province • Pacini • McDonald’s • Pizza Hut* • KFC • Scores • Subway • St-Hubert* • Tim Hortons • Valentine *Benny & Co., St-Hubert and Pizza Hut offer both restaurant models. They were classified based on the model visited.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

It is important to note that business practices vary within the same restaurant chain, and that advertising practices may vary from one establishment to another. The following observations cannot, therefore, be generalized, but provide an overview of the marketing tactics used in Quebec restaurants. Menu Appearance In restaurants with a children’s menu, different elements are observed, including the use of funny meal names (e.g., On one leg, Baby Burger, Cheese bug, Smiling macaroni, Mini bunny pizza), attractive colours or fonts, images of toys or brand characters. Activities are often proposed on children’s menus. Furthermore, many restaurants use children’s menus for food product placement of specific brands. Whether drinks, desserts or sides, we often see certain products with an easily identifiable brand featured on children’s menus. For example, they highlight photographs or logos of Oasis fruit juice, Aquafina water, Mott’s fruit sauce, Fruit Me Up! or Buddy Fruits, Pogos, Nerds candies or Nutella.

Harvey’s (2019): Oasis and Mott’s

Subway (2019): Aquafina and Buddy Fruits Pacini (2019): Nutella

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Fast-Food Restaurants Children’s Menu Not all fast-food restaurants offer an on-site children’s menu. Among the fast-food restaurants visited, four do not have any at the counter:  Domino’s  La Belle Province*  KFC  Valentine*

*However, a children’s menu can be viewed on the websites of the La Belle Province and Valentine restaurants.

La Belle Province: screenshot on April 29, 2019

For the other fast-food establishments, most of the children’s menus are displayed above the order counter or drive-thru. They have a fun appearance, are easily noticeable and have at least one advertising element directed at children. The table on the following page presents a summary of the findings.

McDonald’s (2019)

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Burger King (2019) Tim Hortons (2019)

Table 1: Appearance of Children’s Menu in the Fast-Food Restaurants Visited

Inside Outside

(order counter) (drive-thru)

Name of

eal eal

m enu

Restaurants children’s

ames

onts

f n

olours or

roduct roduct

eal

romotion romotion

ackage

rawings

lacement

Attractive

Food

Childish

hildren’s hildren’s

Toy Toy

Fun

resentation the of

Promotion

Childish p

A&W Kid’s Meals  

“Surprise” Benny & Co. Kids’ Menu   written on the

menu King Junior “Toy” written Burger King   Meals on the menu

“Activity book” Harvey’s Junior Combo  written on the  menu

Displays in the McDonald’s Happy Meal   order area

Poster at the Subway Junior Combo  N/A cash Timmies Tim Hortons     Minis Pack

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Menu Content Fast-food children’s menus are often comprised of a three or four-food combo, many of which have little nutritional value. In general, the main item proposed is chicken nuggets, a hamburger, wrap or sandwich. Sides include fries, fruit sauce, apple slices, cheese and flavoured yoghurt.i The drinks most often proposed are fruit juices, water bottles or plain or chocolate milk.

A&W (2019)

A&W (2019) Burger King (2019) Benny & Co. (2019)

Tim Hortons (2019) Subway (2019)

Although some chains feature healthy sides, those choices fare poorly against the other items on the children’s menu. Images of sugary drinks, fries, chips and cookies are often highlighted in the general menu displayed on the screens.

McDonald’s (2019)

i Note: The yoghurt offered with the McDonald’s Happy Meal contains 5% of the daily value for sugar. 7

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Tim Hortons (2019)

Harvey’s (2019)

Subway (2019)

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Family Restaurants Children’s Menu As shown in the table below, family restaurants regularly use children’s menus as a marketing tool. Table 2: Appearance of the Children’s Menu in the Family Restaurants Visited

Menu Colouring and activities

oy oy

ogo

iven iven

rand rand ran g

Food

b b

ames

hildren’s hildren’s

onts

c n

Restaurants enu product

ook ook

olouring on olouring on

c b

eal placement

ackage

rawings

erved in erved ain

haracters

eparately

the

Game

esence esence of

Childish

haracters or haracters or

Fun

Pr Presence of c

Activity

Meal

Games or Colouring or

Boston       Pizza

La Cage aux   Sports

Cora       

Mikes      

Normandin       

Pacini       

Pizza Hut 

Scores       

St-Hubert        

In fact, 90% of the chains visited have a children’s menu with the brand on it (e.g., logo and brand character). Some are more attractive than others, but most directly target children and combine different strategies. For example, menu mats or menus containing games, such as colouring or puzzles, are proposed. Some even combine games, the menu and mat. In other cases, activity booklets are offered to children to help them wait for their meal. They also include restaurant logos and characters next to the food or pictures of children’s meals.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

St-Hubert (2019): menu mat with games

Pacini (2019): menu mat with games Cora (2019): children’s menu

Scores (2019): menu – activity book

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Menu Content In most of the family restaurants studied, children’s meals include a drink (sometimes bottomless), a main meal and a dessert. Even though there is a greater food choice than in fast-food restaurants, most of the time junk food tends to dominate in children’s menus at family restaurants. Sugary drinks are the ones most shown, whether fruit juices or soft drinks. Milk is also proposed, but rarely featured in the plain version. None of the children’s menus in the family restaurants visited presented water.

Boston Pizza (2019)

Boston Pizza (2019) Normandin (2019)

La Cage aux Sports (2019) Mikes (2019)

The main meal is often not nutritious: pizza, nuggets, hamburger or white pasta with a cheese, tomato and/or meat sauce. As a side, fries are often suggested in the children’s menu. Only a few restaurants feature vegetable-based sides (soup salad, crudités).

Mikes (2019) Scores (2019) 11

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Pacini (2019) Pacini (2019)

Normandin (2019)

La Cage des Sports (2019) Furthermore, dessert options are most often comprised of ice cream or cake, although there is also sometimes fruit or fruit sauces. The latter may, however, have little appeal when compared to the other choices.

Normandin (2019)

St-Hubert (2019)

Boston Pizza (2019) Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Meal Presentation Fun Packages Food or meal packaging is often used to attract children, especially in fast-food restaurants. The characters that appear on the packages may influence children’s eating habits, since children prefer these foods to another identical food and even believe that they taste better, especially with high- 4,5 calorie/low-nutrient foods. Weight Coalition Archives. Furthermore, the presence of the McDonald’s (2013-2019) company’s logo may also influence the child’s perception. For example, an American study conducted in 2007 reveals that children prefer the taste of food and drinks when they believe they come from McDonald’s.6 With the exception of Subway and Harvey’s, the fast-food restaurants visited deliver children’s meals in fun packaging most of the time. Whether it is the presence of characters or a more colourful package, there are numerous marketing techniques for attracting children. Certain packages, such as those from A&W and McDonald’s, even place their products on them.

Burger King (2019)

McDonald’s (2019)

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Weight Coalition Archives. Weight Coalition Archives. McDonald’s (2013) McDonald’s (2013)

A&W (2019)

In all cases, whether or not the packaging is childish, children are widely exposed to the brand, which is found on packaging for children’s meals, on food packaging and even on napkins.

Subway (2019) Coalitions Poids Archives. Subway (2014)

Among the family restaurants analyzed, only two use promotional packaging in the presentation of children’s meals. Scores and Saint-Hubert offer certain meals consumed on site in fun cardboard packages that feature their brand characters and restaurant logos.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

At Saint-Hubert, the classic small cardboard car is reserved for children who choose the chicken nuggets, which many influence them to make this choice over healthier options. Similarly, Scores reserves its fun packaging for breaded chicken and the mini cheeseburger, which makes these more attractive choices than the tortellini or chicken leg with vegetables.

St-Hubert (2019) Scores (2019)

Besides the ethical aspect of advertising to children, we can also question the environmental impact of this over-packaging in the dining room, since reusable plates are already used under the childish boxes to bring the meals to the table. Furthermore, several restaurant chains also offer home delivery. In these cases, the meals ordered must obviously be packaged. Children’s menus are not generally placed in childish boxes, except for the Benny & Co. take-out box.

Benny & Co. (2019)

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Toys Offering toys with children’s meals is an advertising tactic widely used in fast-food restaurants. This type of cross-promotion makes it possible to promote two products at the same time, thereby reinforcing the desire to obtain both. These toys are quite often associated with movies, shows or popular kids’ toy lines.

Weight Coalition Burger King (2019) McDonald’s (2019): Archives. Burger King Promoting the Max promoting the Lego (2007): promoting the Steel movie (2017) movie Simpsons movie

Most of the toys offered are limited-time collections, which encourages young consumers to return quickly in order to get all of the toys promoted.

Weight Coalition Archives. Weight Coalition Archives. McDonald’s Subway (2012; 2014; 2015): promoting (2007 to 2019) Wreck-it Ralph, Big Hero 6, and The Good Dinosaur movies. Subway (2019): promoting the Hasbro Littlest PetShop toys 16

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Since 2017 in Quebec, McDonald’s has offered the possibility of choosing a book instead of a game with a children’s meal. These books are also offered in the form of a collection, inviting children to get the next book.

McDonald’s (2019)

In 2009, Burger King was the first restaurant chain to acknowledge that it had illegally advertised to children, in particular through promotional posters.

Weight Coalition Archives. Burger King (2007)

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

The Weight Coalition archives also show that McDonald’s restaurants position their brand and Happy Meal on toys given to children. Complaints with the Office de la protection du consommateur have been filed to this effect.

Weight Coalition Weight Coalition Archives. Archives. McDonald’s (2013) McDonald’s (2018)

Weight Coalition Archives. McDonald’s (2015) Summary of Related Practices In fast-food restaurants, toy offers and fun meal and food packaging, are a well- established practice. In fact, only one of the restaurants visited, namely A&W, did not offer any toy with the purchase of a children’s meal. Table 3: Fun Packaging and Toys in the Fast-Food Restaurants Visited

Meal packaging (e.g., bag or box) Food packaging

Restaurants Toy offered

ackage

brand

Brand Brand Brand

package Childish

presence presence

Child can

packaging

placement

characters characters

Presence of

Fun

play the with Food product Food product

A&W     

Benny & Co.     

Burger King      

Harvey’s    McDonald’s          Subway    Tim Hortons    

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Fun packaging is rarer in family restaurants. Of all the restaurants visited, only two propose this type of packaging: Scores and Saint-Hubert. There are also no toys. Instead they give children activity books, that may or may not be attached to the menu, to play with until their meal arrives.

Boston Pizza (2019): activity book Cora (2019): activity book

In-restaurant Promotion Other tactics are used inside the actual restaurant to attract children’s attention. These include posters, the setting, toy display, playroom, cut-outs, etc. Advertising posters directed at children are usually prohibited in Quebec.

Boston Pizza (2019) Weight Coalition Archives. St-Hubert (2014-2019) 19

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Fast-Food Restaurants Regarding advertising strategies in fast-food restaurants, McDonald’s stands out from the rest due to the combination of strategies used. Table 4: Promotion Inside the Fast-Food Restaurants Visited

Advertising Posters of Food posters Other Restaurants brand Toy display product Playroom directed at strategies characters placement children A&W 

Benny & Co. 

Burger King 

Harvey’s

McDonald’s     

Subway  

Tim Hortons

McDonald’s (2019): advertising McDonald’s (2019): advertising poster poster

McDonald’s (2019): McDonald’s (2019): self- McDonald’s (2019): self- playroom serve colouring station serve children’s bib 20

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Toy displays in McDonald’s restaurants are located at the restaurant entrance or near the order counter, and are set up in an attractive manner at the child’s eye level. They display limited-time collectible toys, which becomes an incentive for children to return to the restaurant. Their legality is currently being challenged in a class action by Antonio Bramante v. MCDONALD’S RESTAURANTS OF CANADA LIMITED (McDonald's).7

Weight Coalition Archives. McDonald’s (2017)

McDonald’s (2019): contest to win the display

Weight Coalition Archives. McDonald’s (2016)

Weight Coalition Archives. McDonald’s (2018) McDonald’s (2019): balloons offered

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Other practices observed in fast-food restaurants seek, among other things, to feature brand characters.

Benny & Co. (2019)

A&W (2019)

Subway (2019) Family Restaurants In the family restaurants visited, marketing to children in the dining room is uneven. The Weight Coalition has observed that playrooms are rare since only one restaurant visited had one. It also appears that there are disparities among restaurants of the same chain. For example, some Benny & Co. restaurants have a playroom. Moreover, four restaurants had an advertising poster with childish elements or posters featuring brand characters from the restaurant’s chain.

St-Hubert (2019): Boston Pizza (2019): Pizza Hut (2019): 22 playroom cut-out advertising poster Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Table 5: Promotion Inside the Fast-Food Restaurants Visited

Brand character Advertising posters Restaurants displays Cut-out Playroom directed at children

Boston Pizza  

La Cage aux Sports

Cora 

Mikes

Normandin

Pacini

Pizza Hut 

Scores

St-Hubert  

Brand Characters The use of brand characters is rather widespread. Two thirds of the restaurants visited use this type of marketing strategy. These are found on menus, activity books, promotional posters and certain containers used to serve meals to children. Table 6: Brand Characters in the Restaurants Visited Fast-food Brand characters Family restaurants Brand characters restaurants A&W  Boston Pizza  Benny & Co.  La Cage aux Sports Burger King  Cora  Harvey's Mikes

McDonald's  Normandin  Subway Pacini 

Tim Hortons Pizza Hut

Scores  St-Hubert 

Cora (2019) Scores (2019) Burger King (2019) 23

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

These practices are not new. Over the past few years, the Weight Coalition has observed numerous promotional items of this type, as can be seen from the archive images.

Weight Coalition Archives. Weight Coalition Archives. St-Hubert (2014) Tim Hortons (2015)

Websites The advertising of children’s meals can be found on mobile apps, websites and online games. Given this multi-platform marketing, access of advertisers to children is increasingly difficult to control.8 Some restaurants offer games for children and printable drawings on their websites, and sometimes use their brand characters to promote children’s meals. In the Quebec context, since the law prevents companies from marketing to children under the age of 13, the Weight Coalition has noticed different marketing practices on restaurant websites. For example, some restaurants with youth interaction on their sites ask the age and province of residence of the user trying to access the site. This is the case of McDonald’s and Tim Hortons, which block users who state they are under 13 and living in Quebec from accessing the youth section. It is, however, easy to sidestep this filter by entering an age over 12 or a place of residence other than Quebec. Among the restaurants visited, several do not have sections intended for children in either the French or English version of their site. The following restaurants are those where advertising practices directed at children have been observed. However, on several websites, access to the children’s menu page does not seem to be emphasized and requires some search time. McDonald’s The Happy Meal image is displayed and accessible to a child by clicking on Menu on the home page. However, a control window appears both on the English and French version of the site before accessing this page.ii A litte girl hiding behind her Happy Meal can be seen behind this window.

ii Note: There was no control window on the English version of the website prior to the class action being filed in 2016. 24

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

McDonald’s: screenshot March 3, 2019 Tim Hortons On March 3, 2019, it was possible for children to access Timmies Minis in the Menu section. The section was controlled based on age and province. Since April 2019, the children’s menu can no longer be found on the Tim Hortons website.

Tim Hortons: screenshot March 3, 2019

Burger King The King JRTM Meals - children’s meals – section can be easily entered from the home page and directs children to a page with colours and fun drawings with the King crown (brand character). The menu is preceded by a cross-promotion with the movie “Pokémon Detective Pikachu.” The site does not have any age filter. However, unlike the English version of the website, the French version does not promote the six collectible toys with the purchase of a Junior meal.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Burger King: screenshot April 26, 2019 FRENCH VERSION

Burger King: screenshot April 26, 2019 ENGLISH VERSION

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

St-Hubert The children’s menu can be easily accessed from the home page, but the page with meals offered is not attractive to a child. In the website’s Special Offers’ section, “Champion Tuesdays” are featured by using the restaurant’s registered characters and presenting a kid’s meal in a small car decorated with the company’s logos. St-Hubert : screenshot March 3, 2019 Mikes This family restaurant has the mini-menu (completed in the dining room by children) answer booklet online on its website. It is found in the children’s menu section and requires a few steps to get to it, such as entering a postal code to identify the nearest restaurant.

Boston Pizza A Children’s section can be found in English and French in the footer menu on the Boston Pizza website. This section uses the restaurant’s mascot to promote a children’s menu. The site also Mikes : screenshot March 3, 2019 proposes several downloadable colouring images.

Boston Pizza: screenshot March 3, 2019 This section also contains different restaurant programs offered by Boston Pizza for schools. On the home page, in the Menu section, the Kids’ link leads to a menu page for very young children with the picture of a toddler playing with two pepperonis.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Boston Pizza: screenshot March 3, 2019

Kentucky Fried Chicken On March 3, 2019, a video ad Feelin’ KFC? on the restaurant’s website featured school-aged kids envious of a couple eating KFC in the car following their bus. This ad was directed at a French-speaking audience without an age filter. On April 15, the ad disappeared from the site and was replaced by a new ad involving only adults. With the exception of the videos, the French and English KFC sites are identical. Several KFC videos in English feature children.

Kentucky Fried Chicken: screenshot March 3, 2019

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Scores It is easy to access children’s meals on the home page by entering the Menu. Scores proposes certain options in a meal box shaped like a chicken, the restaurant’s brand character.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Conclusion Attracting children is a lucrative practice for restaurant owners. Actually, the organization Restaurant Canada does not hesitate to promote this to its members as can be seen from the following excerpt from a blog titled “Eight ways to make your restaurant kid friendly.”9

The Weight Coalition has observed that the intensity of marketing practices differs from one restaurant chain and establishment to another. The marketing strategies used also differ based on restaurant type. While promotional collectible toys are offered with most children’s meals in fast- food restaurants, it is the fun mats or activity books that are preferred in family restaurants. Furthermore, fast-food restaurants have more advertising on meal and food packaging, as well as more intensive promotional material inside the establishment (e.g., toy display, posters). McDonald’s restaurants stand out from other fast-food restaurants through the proliferation of the marketing strategies used. Among the family restaurants, St-Hubert and Boston Pizza seem to have the most marketing practices, using a combination of strategies (e.g., brand character, fun menus with activities, promotional posters, playrooms, display cases). In general, the menu presentation in family restaurants is more fun than in fast-food restaurants, since the restaurant context is undoubtedly better suited to this. The placement of specific food product brands is a recurring practice in several restaurants. Some banners also place their own products on food packages or on toys. Furthermore, several restaurants have created brand characters that involve children and that are found on the packages, menus, posters, websites or promotional objects. In brief, we often observe marketing strategies directed at children in different ways and different places in fast-food and family restaurants in Quebec. Although most of the practices illustrated comply with the legislation, they can still be questioned on ethical and environmental levels.

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants

Appendix

Photos from fast-food and family restaurants

Data gathered in Quebec:

• at 20 popular restaurants; • between February and April 2019

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants Fast-Food Restaurants Definition: The customer orders and pays before eating Of the fast-food restaurants visited, four did not offer children’s menus in store:

• KFC • Domino’s • Valentine

• La Belle Province

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants Fast-Food Restaurants: Presentation of the Children’s Menu

Interior Exterior (counter order) (drive-thru) Restaurants Name of children’s menu Childish Childish Food Fun item names Promotion of Appealing presentation fonts colours or Promotion of toy product meal packaging of children’s menu drawings placement

A&W Kid’s Meals   “Free gift” written on  Benny & Co. Kid’s Menu  the menu

“Toy” written on the Burger King King Jr Meals  menu 

“Activity book” written Harvey’s Kids Combos  on the menu  Displays in the ordering McDonald’s Happy Meals  area 

Subway Kids’ Pak Poster at the register  N/A

Timmies Minis Tim Hortons     Pack

Presentation of the Children’s Menu

A&W Benny & Co.

Presentation of the Children’s Menu

Harvey’s Subway

Presentation of the Children’s Menu Tim Hortons Burger King

Presentation of the Children’s Menu McDonald’s

Fast-Food Restaurants: Meal Presentation

Meal packaging (e.g., bag or box) Food packaging Registered Restaurants Meal in fun Child can play Presence of Registered Food product Presence Childish Registered Toy given characters or packaging with packaging brand on character on placement packaging character on of brand on brand on toy packaging packaging packaging packaging  A&W        Benny &   Co.    Burger King      Harvey’s             McDonald’s   Subway     Tim     Hortons

Meal Presentation A&W

Meal Presentation Benny & Co.

Meal Presentation Burger King

Meal Presentation Harvey’s

Meal Presentation McDonald’s

Meal Presentation Subway

Meal Presentation Tim Hortons

Fast-Food Restaurants: Interior Promotion

Advertising Registered Food product Restaurants characters posters directed Toy display Playroom Other strategies placement displayed at children

A&W  *available in certain Benny & Co.  stores designed as family restaurants Burger King 

Harvey’s     McDonald’s 

Subway  

Tim Hortons

Interior Promotion A&W

Interior Promotion Benny & Co.

Interior Promotion Burger King

Interior Promotion McDonald’s

Interior Promotion Subway

Family Restaurants Definition: Full-service restaurants

All of the family restaurants visited offered a children’s menu.

Family Restaurants: Presentation of the Children’s Menu

Menu Colouring and activities

Games or Food product Restaurants Item served in Activity book Presence of Childish colouring on Placemat placement Childish font Presence of Fun item playful provided brand characters colours or the menu with games brand characters names packaging separately or logos drawings itself

Boston Pizza      

La Cage aux Sports  

Cora       

Mikes      

Normandin       

Pacini       

Pizza Hut 

Scores       

St-Hubert        

Presentation of the Menu Boston Pizza

Activity Book Boston Pizza

Presentation of the Menu La Cage aux Sport

Presentation of the Menu Cora

Activity Book Cora

Presentation of the Menu Mikes

Presentation of the Menu Normandin

Placemat with Games Normandin

Presentation of the Menu Pacini

Placemat with Games Pacini

Presentation of the Menu Pizza Hut

Presentation of the Menu Scores

Presentation of the Menu St-Hubert

Meal Presentation St-Hubert

Family Restaurants: Interior Promotion

Registered Advertising posters directed characters Head pass- Restaurants at children Playroom displayed through

 Boston Pizza  La Cage aux Sports Cora  Mikes Normandin Pacini Pizza Hut  Scores St-Hubert  

Interior Promotion Boston Pizza

Exterior Promotion Boston Pizza

Interior Promotion Cora

Interior Promotion Pizza Hut

Interior Promotion St-Hubert

Fast-Food and Family Restaurants: Brand Characters

Family restaurants Brand characters Fast-food restaurants Brand characters

Boston Pizza  A&W  La Cage aux Sports Benny & Co.  Cora  Burger King  Mikes Harvey's Normandin  McDonald's  Pacini  Subway Pizza Hut Tim Hortons Scores 

St-Hubert 

Brand Characters Boston Pizza

Brand Characters Cora

Brand Characters Normandin

Brand Characters Pacini

Brand Characters Scores

Brand Characters St-Hubert

Brand Characters A&W

Brand Characters Benny & Co.

Brand Characters Burger King

Brand Characters McDonald’s

Food Advertising to Children at Fast-Food and Family Restaurants References

1 Cornwell B., McAlister A. (2010). Children’s Brand Symbolism Understanding : Links to Theory of Mind and Executive Functioning, Psychology & Marketing, Vol. 27 (3): 203-228. 2 Sturm R. (2008) Disparities in the food environment surrounding US middle and high schools. Public Health; 122(7): 681-690. 3 Statistics Canada. North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Canada 2012. Full- service Restaurants. Retrieved on March 3, 2019: http://www23.statcan.gc.ca/imdb/p3VD.pl?Function=getVD&TVD=118464&CVD=118468&CPV= 72251&CST=01012012&CLV=4&MLV=5&D=1 4 Roberto, C.A., Baik, J., Harris, J.L. & Brownell,KD. (2010). Influence of Licensed Characters on Children’s Taste and Snack Preferences, Pediatrics, 126(1): 88-93. Retrieved on July 8, 2011: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2010/06/21/peds.2009-3433.full.pdf+html 5 Lapierre, M.A., Vaala, S.A. & Linebarger, D.L. (2011). Influence of Licensed Spokes characters and Health Cues on Children’s Ratings of Cereal Taste, Arch. Pediatr. Adolesc. Med., 165(3), 229-234. 6 Robinson, T.N., Borzekowski, D.L.G, Matheson, D.M. & Kraemer,H.C.(2007). Effects of Fast Food Branding on Young Children’s Taste Preferences. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 161(8),792- 797. 7 Superior Court of Quebec. Registry of Class Actions. Overview of the application 500-06- 000824-165. Retrieved on April 26, 2019: https://www.registredesactionscollectives.quebec/en/Consulter/ApercuDemande?NoDossier=50 0-06-000824-165 8 Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity (2013). Measuring Progress in Nutrition and Marketing to Children and Teens. Fast Food FACTS 2013: Measuring Progress in Nutrition and Marketing to Children and Teens. Retrieved on April 21, 2015: http://fastfoodmarketing.org/media/FastFoodFACTS_Report.pdf 9 Restaurants Canada (January 14, 2016). Eight ways to make your restaurant kid-friendly. Retrieved on April 27, 2019: https://blog.restaurantscanada.org/index.php/2016/01/14/eight- ways-to-make-your-restaurant-kid-friendly/