Obama Administration to Tackle School Vending Machines
With childhood obesity reaching all-time highs, the government has tackled the school’s hot lunch, and is now after its next big culprit: The vending machines.
Since children receive 19 to 50 percent of their food while at school, the Obama Administration plans to set rules for what can and can’t be sold in the vending machine. These guidelines will likely be released in the next few weeks.
One in five children is overweight. Since statics such as this have tripled in the past 30 years, nutritionists say that vending machines, supplied with potato chips, cookies and soda, may contribute to the obesity epidemic.
Representatives from the food and beverage industries say that many of their snacks are healthy and should not be banned. They say they support vending snacks that are in good nutrition.
“But we are a little concerned that they might make the rules too stringent,” James A. McCarthy said, president of the Snack Food Association, a trade group in Washington.