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Sugared Colas Banned in Elementary, Middle Schools in US
Sodas are out in lower grades
Beverage group reworks policies
By Caroline Wilbert
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
August 17, 2005
In response to mounting pressure from health advocates, Coca-Cola,
Pepsico and the rest of the soft drink industry are voluntarily banning
sugary soda in elementary and middle schools and restricting sales
in high schools.
The American Beverage Association announced the policy late Tuesday.
The move marks a significant change in strategy for the industry,
which has been battling proposals for school vending regulations in
legislatures and school districts.
"Childhood obesity is a serious problem in the U.S., and the responsibility
for finding common-sense solutions is shared by everyone, including
our industry," Susan Neely, ABA president and chief executive officer,
said. "We intend to be part of the solution by increasing the availability
of lower-calorie and/or nutritious beverages in schools."
The policy says that no carbonated soft drinks, regular or diet, will
be sold in vending machines in elementary schools. Only water and
100 percent fruit juice will be allowed.
In middle schools, sugary carbonated soft drinks are out, but diet
drinks are allowed, along with so-called healthier alternatives like
water, sports drinks, 100 percent juices and diet juice drinks.
At high schools, no more than half the vending machine slots can be
filled with carbonated soft drinks, whether regular or diet. The rest
will be filled with water, juice, sports drinks and other noncarbonated
drinks.
The soft drink industry's plan, first reported in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
last month, has been tweaked in recent weeks to include allowing diet
drinks in middle schools. The beverage association's members include
Coke, Pepsi, smaller beverage companies and bottlers.
The industry is likely to encounter some criticism from health advocates
who say the policy doesn't go far enough.
Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Washington-based Center
for Science in the Public Interest and an outspoken critic of the
soft drink industry, called the new policy a "modest improvement to
our current situation."
He said Tuesday he would like to see a ban on all carbonated soft
drinks — regular and diet — in all schools.
"This does indicate that the industry is willing to make some small
sacrifices, if only to protect its reputation," he said.
The industry already has a practice of not selling carbonated soft
drinks to students in elementary schools, though the new proposal
would make it more official and consistent.
And in middle and high schools, soft drink companies already are selling
water, juice and sports drinks alongside sodas because they are popular
with young consumers.
School sales don't represent significant revenue for beverage companies.
For Coke, schools make up less than 1 percent of sales in North America.
But the change carries symbolic importance. The industry wants to
show parents that it is taking the obesity issue seriously. In the
past, Coke and other beverage companies have resisted restrictions
because schools are a good place to market to young consumers and
develop long-term brand loyalty.
Also, companies don't want limits that seem to acknowledge that soft
drinks are bad for kids or that they lead to obesity.
The policy comes nearly a year after Canada's beverage industry instituted
a ban on carbonated soft drinks in elementary and middle schools.
The Canadian policy doesn't address high schools.
The issue was a hot topic in state legislatures this year, with 38
states considering school nutrition bills, most of which included
a vending machine component. At least 15 laws were enacted.
Legislators in Georgia, the home of Coca-Cola, have not taken up the
issue.
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