Fresh calls for regulation of junk food marketing in Germany: ‘Voluntary commitments cannot work’ Voluntary codes to limit the marketing of unhealthy food and beverages to children ‘cannot work’, according to the Federation of German Consumer Organisations. The association is calling for tougher action. Voluntary business commitments fail to ‘effectively protect children’ from the marketing of ‘unbalanced foods’. That is the conclusion of a new report commissioned by the Federation of German Consumer Organisations (VZBV). The research, authored by Dr Peter von Philipsborn, an MD and nutrition expert from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, found existing voluntary commitments exclude ‘important forms of marketing’ – such as packaging targeting children and digital exposure - and offer ‘numerous loopholes’ due to vague definitions.