Katie Price Faces Backlash for Promoting Diet Food Firm on Instagram
KATIE Price has come under fire for failing to make it clear she was advertising a diet food firm on Instagram. The advert for The Skinny Food Co, which sparked outrage with fans at the time, has now been banned for irresponsibly promoting a diet that fell below 800 calories a day and for making unauthorized weight loss claims.
Katie Price’s Low Calorie Instagram Advert
The Instagram reel featured Katie, 45, making meals for herself throughout the day and talking about her efforts to lose weight. In the video, the mum-of-five – who was recently made bankrupt for a second time – says: “So here I am making my delicious coffee, with the caramelized biscuit Skinny Food zero-calorie syrup. It’s fat-free and sugar-free too.”
The Skinny Food Products Featured in the Advert
She then made lunch for herself and dinner, saying: “Here I am, God look at that double chin, here’s why I’m on the Skinny Foods, Jesus, look at that double chin. Now, everyone knows I love a curry, so tonight, I am making a chicken tikka takeaway meal. The curry is low in sugar, high protein and only 189 calories.”
The Controversial Calorie Count
The final shot said: “Total calories for the day = 755.” A caption stated: “Another example of how you can eat so many delicious meals and snacks in the day. All of this was only 755 calories and helping me stay in a calorie deficit to shift some extra pounds when needed. If I have a bad day I like to go in a calorie deficit to ensure it’s not a bad week!”
The Advertising Standards Authority’s Response
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received two complaints that the post was not obviously recognizable as an ad and irresponsible for promoting a diet low in calories. At the time, fans raged with one person saying: “Katie. 800 calories is not even enough for a toddler. Eat proper food, not that.”
Katie’s Accountability and Response
Not Guilty Food Co Ltd, trading as The Skinny Food Co, said that the reel included ‘#ad’, which they considered sufficient. The firm also said it could not control what Katie ate, but that being in a “calorie deficit” was a proven way to achieve weight loss. Katie agreed to remove the ad and confirmed that she followed a calorie deficit approach, which she believed many people in the UK did, and asked for further information on how to make similar posts compliant in the future.