Fast food giant McDonald’s is “extremely disappointed” at being dumped by police as the sponsor for their road safety campaign in schools, but child health advocates are praising the move.
McDonald’s had given police $40,000 a year for the past 20 years, in a marketing campaign which includes television advertisements and school visits.
But Acting Superintendent Sam Hoyle, national manager of youth services, told the Press newspaper the money was “a drop in the bucket” compared to the millions police already spent on road safety.
Police will make up the shortfall from their own budget, he said.
The end of the alliance with McDonald’s comes shortly after the government announced its $67 million, four-year campaign to tackle childhood obesity.
But police said the dumping was not related to the anti-obesity push.
Corporate sponsorship was against national policy and although the partnership had been helpful, it had run its course, Mr Hoyle said.
National’s law and order spokesman Simon Power said the police have been forced to adhere to a “misguided ideology about commercial involvement”.
“I understand that over the 10 years that this campaign ran, McDonald’s pumped $8 million into the campaign, including a $40,000 donation and considerable resource support.
“Now all that is down the drain because of some blind adherence to this Government’s ideology.
No comments yet.