The government will also work with the industry to strengthen the existing voluntary codes on non-broadcast junk food advertising, and establish a new Food and Drink Advertising Forum to review and strengthen existing provisions for promoting food.
The moves were announced today as the follow-up to last year's White Paper on health, and saw the government outlining measures and a timetable to implement the new paper.
The government said it would look to the media regulator, known for its light touch in regulatory matters, after failing to bring into effect an outright ban on junk food ads, despite widespread support from parents and health professionals.
The government has acknowledged that many were in favour of a ban, but referred to Ofcom research concluding that television advertising only had a "modest direct effect" on children's food choices.
The food and advertising industries had also lobbied strongly against the ban, instead pushing for the government to spend more on promoting a healthy lifestyle via advertising. The government said it would also include options for broadcasters and advertisers to do this.
Other measures called for in the government document 'Choosing Health' include the implementation of a new "traffic light" system to identify unhealthy foods by early 2006; and moves to get children to draw up personal health plans.
Health secretary John Reid said: "We know how important it is to make sure healthy habits start young. That's why we are taking a range of actions to get kids involved in making healthier choices about the food they eat and how much exercise they take."
The government will also work with the food industry to reduce salt, sugar and fat levels in food.
It has given the food industry less than a year to adopt the new "traffic light" system, which will alert consumers to the nutritional content of products in a simple way. Details of how the scheme will work will be unveiled by the middle of this year.
Figures show that in 2003, 拢743m was spent in the UK advertising food, soft drinks and chain restaurants, compared with 拢7m spend on food-related campaigns by the government in 2004.
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