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Archived press release

Give Our Kids a Break! "TrashFormers" Hit Town

26 November 1998

To mark international No Shop Day 1998[1] - Saturday 28 November - Friends of the Earth[FOE] will 'launch' a spoof range of toys, the TrashFormers. These will draw attention to the impact of advertising on young children, and the knock-on social and environmental effects of consumerism.

The toys include the Fibby (“Talks Rubbish, Looks Rubbish, Becomes Rubbish!”) My Little Phoney (“Guaranteed to Disappoint!”) and others. There will be events to 'launch' the toys in London and in towns up and down the country.

Children in the UK see around 18,000 ads per year. Advertisers are trying to create 'pester power' for their latest products, whether parents can afford them or not. Research suggests that children are three times more susceptible to advertising than adults. But regulation of advertising aimed at kids in the UK is very weak. In Norway and Sweden TV advertising aimed at kids under 12 is banned. FOE suggests a UK ban on TV advertising of children's products until after 9pm. [2]

This No-Shop Day action is part of FOE's campaign to launch a debate about whether consumerism (promoted by advertising) really makes life better for people.Overconsumption of natural resources is causing vast amounts of pollution and wildlife destruction around the world. Moreover the UK consumes far more than its fair share,increasing gulf between the haves and the have-nots throughout the world.[3]

Dozens of FOE groups up and down the country will join in the debate. Hundreds more groups will take part in various No Shop Day events around the UK and the rest of the world.

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. International No Shop Day is an annual event to question the impacts of consumerism on people and on the environment. A variety of groups take part, with a variety of actions. Last year saw actions in over 50 towns around the UK, and in countries including the USA, Canada, Ireland, Netherlands, and New Zealand.
   
2. Children, TV Advertising and the Environment - 6 page briefing from Friends of the Earth
   
3. Overconsumption of resources is at the root of many environmental problems. Examples of the impacts are:
   

• Mining of metals leaves behind vast amounts of toxic waste, and destroys habitats
      For example, the Ok Tedi river in Papua New Guinea, next to a copper mine, is permanently yellow or grey, and all the trees along the banks are dead. 80,000 tonnes of waste from the mine has been dumped in the river every day.
• Mining and manufacturing use fossil fuel energy, resulting in climate-changing gas emissions
      Industrial processes account for over a quarter of UK carbon dioxide emissions.
• Manufacturing and waste disposal cause toxic pollution
      Pollution has become so widespread that industrial toxins are found in the bodies of Polar bears in the Arctic.
  
  Moreover the richest 20% of the worlds population (including the UK) consumes sixteen times the amount the poorest 20% does.
  

Research by Friends of the Earth shows that resource consumption in the UK needs to be reduced by around 80% by the year 2050 (Tomorrows World - Britain's Share in a Sustainable Future, Friends of the Earth 1997,Earthscan).

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