An advertisement by the food delivery service Just Eat promoting a McDonald’s burger was banned because insufficient care was taken to ensure that the advertisement was not aimed at children under 16 years of age.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that paid Facebook advertising in its current form could no longer appear after upholding a complaint from Bite Back 2030, a youth activist movement against junk food.

Bite Back 2030 questioned whether the ad was for a product high in fat, salt or sugar (HFSS) and whether it was aimed at children based on the media selection or the context in which it appeared.

The ad for Just Eat, dated December 15, 2023, included the text: “Fancy a McMuffin in the morning? McNuggets for lunch? Or a big night in with a Big Mac? Get them delivered right here.” Below was a changing image of McNuggets, replaced by the Just Eat and McDonald’s logos.

Just Eat had argued that the ad’s targeting was responsible: the company had targeted the ad at people over 18 using Meta’s age-specific tools. The company argued that if the plaintiff had registered a Facebook account with an age under 18, he would not have been able to see the ad at that time.

The Committee of Advertising Practice’s Code of Conduct requires that advertisements for HFSS products must not be directed at persons under 16 years of age either through the choice of media or the context in which they appear.

The ASA said it acknowledged that the ad was age-targeted to exclude people registered with Facebook as under 18 from seeing the ad, but it said no interest-based targeting factors were used to exclude groups of people more likely to be under 16 from the audience.

“We concluded that Just Eat had not taken sufficient care to ensure that the advert, which promoted several HFSS products, was not aimed at persons under 16 years of age. The advert therefore breached the Code,” the ASA said.

Just Eat said: “By targeting users over 18, we believe we have taken reasonable steps to prevent protected age groups from seeing the adverts.

“While we are disappointed with this outcome, Just Eat acknowledges the ASA’s concerns. We are now reviewing our processes to ensure future promotions only reach the intended audience.”