Revised Dutch Advertising Code for Food Products expands restrictions on marketing to children and adolescents

What is happening?

On 1 February 2026, the revised Dutch Advertising Code for Food Products entered into force. This revision tightened the rules on food advertising targeted at children in the Netherlands.

The prohibition on advertising food products to children, which previously applied to children up to 7 years of age, has now been raised to children up to 13 years. For the age group of children between the ages 13 and 16 years old, advertising is now only permitted for food products that either meet the nutritional criteria (based on the EU Pledge standards) or cumulatively meet the requirements from the Claims Regulation for the nutrition claims “low sugar”, “low fat” and “low salt”. This initiative aims to promote healthier lifestyles and reduce childhood obesity.

Background

The Advertising Code for Food Products (“the Code”) has been in place since 2005 and applies to everyone who markets industrially prepared and often packaged food and beverages in the Netherlands. Unlike many jurisdictions that rely on statutory regulation, the Dutch approach has traditionally been one of industry self-regulation, administered through the Dutch Advertising Code Authority (Stichting Reclame Code, SRC), the Netherlands’ advertising self-regulatory organisation (alongside general consumer and competition laws). The Code has been progressively strengthened over the years. For instance, in 2015, the Code was revised to restrict advertising to children between the ages of 7 to 13 years old, for products that did not meet the nutritional criteria. The use of children’s idols in advertising has been banned since 2019. The 2026 revision further tightens the Code (see press release here).

What has changed?

The revised code was developed following extensive consultation with stakeholders including advertising companies, JOGG, UNICEF, the Nutrition Centre, online platforms and influencers. The Consumer Advisory Council (Consumenten Advies Raad, CAR) provided advice on the draft proposal, after which the FNLI introduced further amendments in consultation with advertisers and the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport.

Key changes include:

• Extended age protection, increasing the advertising ban from children up to 7 years to children up to 13 years, affecting approximately 600,000 additional children in the Netherlands
• New restrictions for children aged 13 to 16, allowing advertising only for products meeting the nutritional criteria or cumulatively meeting the requirements for the nutrition claims “low sugar”, “low fat” and “low salt”
• Prohibition on the use of child and teen idols (this includes influencers) in advertising, including on packaging and point-of-sale materials, aimed at children and teenagers, with limited exceptions for the 13 to 16 years age group
• Stricter nutritional criteria, including lower maximum thresholds for sodium and sugars, and the exclusion of additional product groups such as potato crisps
• Application of nutritional criteria to complete meals depicted in advertising aimed at children, preventing circumvention of the rules through the combination of compliant and non-compliant products in meal settings
• Ban on billboards and posters advertising food products not meeting the nutritional criteria when placed within sight of schools and childcare facilities

What is next?

Recognising that the revised Code imposes substantial new obligations, training programmes are being offered to support compliance. In addition, companies will be able to have campaigns reviewed in advance. Furthermore, a 12-month transition period applies to existing advertising campaigns and current annual media contracts, allowing time to adapt both advertising materials and packaging. All new campaigns must comply with the revised code from 1 February 2026 onwards. The Code will be evaluated after two years.

FNLI has indicated that it aims to make working with certified influencers an industry-wide standard. There are also current initiatives by health foundations campaigning for a total ban on food advertising directed at children. Moreover, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport has announced that it is currently developing a legislative proposal to establish rules regarding the marketing of unhealthy foods to children. These developments suggest that the regulatory landscape for food advertising to children in the Netherlands will continue to evolve in the coming years.