March 14, 2005
FTC and European Commission Focus on Obesity
Arnold & Porter Advisory
FTC Chairman Deborah Majoras announced in a speech Friday that the FTC and the Department of Health and Human Services are planning to hold a 2-day workshop this summer to discuss childhood obesity and industry self-regulatory efforts with respect to the marketing of food and beverages to children. A copy of her speech is attached. The workshop will look at current marketing practices, review existing self-regulatory efforts and discuss current best practices. We expect that there will be significant opportunities for industry participation throughout this process; which Chairman Majoras called an industry "call to action." The agencies will prepare a report following the workshop.