UNICEF Report: Children “feeding profit” amid global surge in junk food marketing

Children around the world are being relentlessly targeted by the ultraprocessed food and beverage industry, according to a new UNICEF report that warns of a deepening crisis in global child nutrition.

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The report, titled Feeding Profit: How Food Environments Are Failing Children, was released last month in New York and paints a stark picture of the digital-age food marketing landscape.

The report reveals that children and adolescents are now a core commercial audience for the ultra-processed food industry — bombarded daily by highly strategic marketing for sugary drinks, snacks, and fast food. From social media to schools, billboards to video games, young people are surrounded by advertising designed to exploit their vulnerabilities, build early brand loyalty, and shape long-term eating habits.

“Children are being fed a steady diet of persuasive, unhealthy food marketing — often without even realising it,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell. “This is not just a public health issue, but a child rights issue.”

UNICEF's global U-Report poll, conducted in 2024 among over 64,000 young people, aged 13-24 across 171 countries, shows that 75% of respondents saw ads for sugary drinks, fast food or snacks in just the previous week. The main culprit? Digital platforms.