Today, CFBAI, the industry's program for self-regulation of food marketing to children, released a study on kid-targeted cereals (http://www.bbb.org/us/Storage/113/Documents/CFBAI%20Cereals%20Fact%20Sheet%20FINAL%20-%20Embargoed%20Until%20Oct%2023.pdf). CFBAI found that there has been progress on reformulating kid-targeted cereals to reduce sugar. But Rudd's Cereal Facts (http://cerealfacts.org/) shows that more work is needed.

The CFBAI study found that over 70% of participants child-targeted cereals have no more than 10 grams of sugar, and 33% have 9 grams or less. However what they fail to point out is:

* 9 grams of sugars means that the typical kid-targeted cereal is one-third sugar

* the American Heart Association recommends that most children and adolescent girls consume no more than 20 grams of added sugars per day, and adolescent boys consume no more than 33 grams of added sugars per day. 9 grams of sugar in one cup of cereal uses up about half of a child's daily budget for sugars (leaving little room for other sugary foods, which are all too prevalent in kids' diets).

* the WIC sugars standard for cereals is 6 grams of total sugars per ounce, which would be more reasonable and healthy than 9 grams

* cereal is the second leading category of food marketed to children, so kids see a lot of cereal marketing

* companies already manufacture lower sugar cereals, though few are marketed to children

* the cereals advertised to children contain 57% more sugars than adult-targeted cereals on average

Companies can and should do better.

In sum:

Though a food industry study found that companies have lowered the amount of sugar in cereals advertised to children, they fail to point out that a typical kid-targeted cereal is one-third sugar and the cereals advertised to children contain 57% more sugars than adult-targeted cereals on average. Companies can and should do better. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFdJMacEt1E

Margo G. Wootan, D.Sc.
Director, Nutrition Policy
Center for Science in the Public Interest
1220 L Street, NW, Suite 300
Washington, D.C. 20005
202-777-8354
202-265-4954 (fax)
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