Policy On Prohibited Activities, Categories, And Products
Updated: April 28, 2022
Legal Restrictions
Ads must comply with all applicable laws and regulations for all the locations where the ads are showing.
Personal Health Content
Products or services relating to physical or mental health conditions.
including diseases, disease diagnostic kits, sexual health, and chronic health conditions, which are health conditions that require long-term care or management.
any health issues associated with intimate body parts or functions, which includes genital, bowel, or urinary health.
invasive medical procedures, which includes cosmetic surgery.
disabilities, even when content is oriented toward the user’s primary caretaker.
examples: treatments for chronic health conditions like diabetes or arthritis, treatments for sexually transmitted diseases, counseling services for mental health issues like depression or anxiety, medical devices for sleep apnea like CPAP machines, over-the-counter medications for yeast infections, information about how to support your autistic child.
Drugs & drug-related products
ads must not promote the sale or use of illegal, prescription, or recreational drugs
Products or devices intended for pregnancy/fertility
for example, pregnancy tests, fertility products, folic acid etc.
Health Services
where it is not already prohibited by the conditions outlined in this document, we cannot use any medical condition related data.
Regulated or Restricted Products
Alcohol products, unless the following conditions are met:
products must be sold in Loblaw retail stores.
cannot use past alcohol purchase history to build an audience for ad serving purposes.
cannot combine with certain sensitive product categories (health category, cold & flu, OTC medication, etc.).
Products related to gambling services
Tobacco products
Marijuana purchases or products (including CBD products)
Pornography or related adult content
Weapons, ammunition, or explosives
Surveillance equipment
ads may not promote the sale of spy cams, mobile phone trackers or other hidden surveillance equipment.
Unauthorized streaming devices
ads must not promote products or items that facilitate or encourage unauthorized access to digital media.
Identity and Belief
Products or services relating to sexual orientation, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, or heterosexual orientation
information about revealing your sexuality and/or services tailored to those with a specific sexual orientation.
Products or services relating to personal race or ethnicity
racially or ethnically oriented publications, racially or ethnically oriented universities, racial or ethnic dating, or any product or service based on or promoting stereotypical or negative associations based on race or ethnicity.
Associations, organizations, or content affiliated with personal religious beliefs
places of worship, religious guidance, religious education or universities, religious products, religious public and community services and organizations.
Associations, organizations, or content relating to political affiliations
political ideologies, political opinions, political parties, political organizations, political campaigns, engagement in political discourse.
Products or services that promote hate or discrimination
Personal Hardships
Products or services relating to personal hardships with family, friends, or other interpersonal relationships
divorce services, books about coping with divorce, bereavement products or services, family counseling services.
Payday loans, paycheck advances, and bail bonds
Other Prohibited Products and Practices
Finance
credit card products.
Apparel
targeting customers based on past purchases of Joe Fresh products is not permitted for apparel advertisements.
Use of a re-marketing list or audience that targets an overly narrow or specific audience
includes instances in which combining a re-marketing list with other targeting criteria (e.g., geographic location) results in a campaign targeting a set of customers less than 10,000 individuals.
Prohibited Content Within Creative
Adult and other content inappropriate for a general audience
images or representations of people that display partially exposed sexual body parts such as breasts, genitals, or buttocks
Sensational content
ads must not contain shocking, sensational, disrespectful, or excessively violent content
Misleading or false content
ads, landing pages, and business practices must not contain deceptive, false, or misleading content, including deceptive claims, offers, or methods
Controversial content
ads must not contain content that exploits controversial political or social issues for commercial purposes including political opinion, religious belief, or advocacy
Grammar and profanity
ads must not contain profanity or bad grammar and punctuation
symbols, numbers, and letters must be used properly without the intention of circumventing our ad review process or other enforcement systems
Personal health
ads must not contain "before-and-after" images or images that contain unexpected or unlikely results
ad content must not imply or attempt to generate negative self-perception to promote diet, weight loss, or other health related products
Hate speech or discriminatory content
ads must not incite violence or intolerance, or advocate or discriminate against a protected group, whether based on race, colour, national origin, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation age or another category
Intellectual Property and Trademark
ads must not infringe or violate any third-party intellectual property (trademark/copyright) rights**
** to submit a trademark or copyright complaint, please send an email to: ad-complaints@loblaw.ca
Have more questions?
Get in touch with us today, we are ready to answer your questions and help you create meaningful and relevant customer experiences that grow your brand’s value.