Olympics and its food

The Olympics has had a long standing with junk food in regards to its sponsorships.

Fast food companies such as Coca-Cola and McDonald's are all official Olympics sponsors as well as sponsors of team GB. There is however a shift happening. Early last year Aldi became the first supermarket sponsor GB. Using fruits and vegetables in their adverts.

Shoppers spent more than £289 million, on fruits and vegetables at Aldi between May and July which is a 19%increase from last year. That’s not all. Aldi is also supporting Team GB’s healthy eating and cooking education program, Get Set to Eat Fresh. Taking a page from celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's book, Aldi has created special programs to teach children how to cook fresh foods at 25,000 British schools.

Part of the reason Aldi’s sponsorship is so notable is that the Olympics have such a long history of promoting and profiting from less healthy foods. According to the marketing magazine Campaign, in 2012 McDonald’s, which has sponsored the Olympics since 1976.

Big Food companies pay big money to get celebrities and athletes to peddle their wares for good reason: It seems to work. According to a recent study in the journal Pediatrics, food and drink campaigns were among the second most popular products celebrities endorsed (after consumer goods like perfume and makeup).

By aligning with sports specifically, food companies are trying to send the message that it’s possible to outrun calories taken in from junk food. But that message is misleading  it’s actually really difficult to burn off extra calories through physical activity.

Aldi’s Team GB campaign could be a sign that consumers are ready for more fruit and vegetable advertising.