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The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has said rules governing the use of children's characters on packaging are strong enough, despite calls from consumer advice organisation Which? to end the practice.

A Which? report said many manufacturers used cartoon characters on their packaging to promote unhealthy products, but there were few examples of cartoons being used to promote healthy products.
 
Three-quarters of parents surveyed by Which? said cartoon characters should not be used to promote unhealthy products.

However, FDF communications director Julian Hunt said the UK had "some of the strictest regulations in the world when it comes to advertising and promoting food and drink products to children".

He said the FDF was working with stakeholders via the Department of Health's Advertising and Promotion Forum to address the issue of promoting food and drink products to children.

And he argued that many individual companies also had their own codes of practice regarding images on packaging aimed at children.