Perhaps it is due to poor diet and insufficient amount of exercise. Or, if I were to believe what Google is telling me, I’m developing a golf ball-sized tumor on my spine and I better say goodbye to my loved ones now. (don’t google your health symptoms)Or maybe it’s the 40-50 hours a week I spend sitting at a desk and staring at a computer. I’m sure it has nothing to do… Regardless of why this is happening, I recently found myself in a physiotherapist’s waiting room, hoping to find a solution to these annoying neck issues. In the center of this waiting room, hung on the Koop e-maildatabase en bouw e-maillijst snel op wall just in front of me, they have a large TV which broadcasts a dozen commercials on a loop. One in particular caught my attention.Getting surprising health advice from a very biased sourceexample of misleading advertising It was a beautifully made animated video with a cute cartoon baby as the star. The video was only about 45 seconds long, but had an “important” and “surprising” message to share. He advocated giving your 6-month-old baby more beef . He even suggested that not feeding your baby beef at 6 months would be detrimental to his health. The best part of this video? I would say the middle part, where they cut a whole steak, toss it in a corned beef jus, then serve it to the baby in a bowl. Mmmmm…steak smoothie… The video ends with a call to action to visit ThinkBeef.ca, where you can find an endless source of delicious beef recipes to serve your toddlers and protect them from harm. You do love your children, right? The question is,who is ThinkBeef.ca? The high production value of the video and the soothing, reassuring tone of the narrator somehow imply that this is an official government video. The website is full of recipes and resources all centered around beef. But we want to know who is funding this ad campaign promoting the alleged health benefits of beef. Just scroll down the website and we find our (partial) answer. example of misleading advertising The website is funded by beef import fees and collected by an organization called the Canadian Beef Check-Off Agency. While that’s close to what I suspected, it’s not exactly the smoking gun drama I was hoping for. Let’s dig a little deeper. A quick Google search helps me find the official website of this agency. After browsing through their “About Us” page, I found exactly what I was looking for.example of misleading advertising This agency is “ the trade name for the Canadian Beef Cattle Research, Market Development and Promotion Agency ”. In other words, this cute little video detailing the supposed nutritional benefits of feeding your baby beef is paid for by the beef industry, the same people who make and sell that beef. “ So? “, you’re probably thinking, ” Companies advertise their products all the time . “And you would obviously be right. But this video is not a traditional advertisement. There is no indication that this is an advertisement. Nowhere in this video are the names of beef industry agencies displayed. There are no brands, no products, no registered trademarks, no copyrights. Traditional ads practically scream their brand names at you. “ OK, fair enough ,” you cautiously follow up with,“ But they directly use Health Canada as the source for their claims. That must mean something, right? " example of misleading advertising Health Canada is a branch of the Canadian government. It is responsible for ensuring the health and well-being of Canadian citizens. It is also strongly influenced by the major groups in the food industry. Part of Health Canada’s job is to create a Recommended Food Guide, a document that helps Canadians make wise food choices and eat healthy. The last time Health Canada revised the official guide was in 1992. Part of the process is to receive “comments and feedback” from food industry groups. When Health Canada sent the first draft of the guide to various industry groups, here’s what happened:The Canadian Meat Council complained that the “meat and alternatives” group included "only 1-3 servings per day, which can be interpreted as prudent meat consumption when considered in context. 4 to 10 servings of vegetables”. The guide has been revised, increasing the recommended servings of meat and alternatives to 2-3. After the Dairy Bureau of Canada and the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency both objected that the proposed guide had reduced the number of servings of their industry’s products, that number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inThe guide has been revised, increasing the recommended servings of meat and alternatives to 2-3.After the Dairy Bureau of Canada and the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency both objected that the proposed guide had reduced the number of servings of their industry’s products, that number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inThe guide has been revised, increasing the recommended servings of meat and alternatives to 2-3. After the Dairy Bureau of Canada and the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency both objected that the proposed guide had reduced the number of servings of their industry’s products, that number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inand Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact,Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inand Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version.CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inCanada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact,Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inCanada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inCanada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact, Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inCanada is about to revise its food guide for the first time inthat number was also increased in the final version. CBC Marketplace co-host Bill Paul told viewers in 1993:A bit of whining and complaining from lobbyists, and Health Canada is changing its food guide to accommodate them. In fact,Canada is about to revise its food guide for the first time in
