Beverage Distributors Scale Back Soda Sales in Schools

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun

President Clinton and the nation’s largest beverage distributors announced an agreement yesterday to stop selling sugary sodas in schools and to reduce serving sizes of juices and other drinks.


In a deal that will be implemented over the next three years, the companies agreed to sell only water, unsweetened juice, and low-fat and nonfat milk, flavored and unflavored, in elementary and middle schools. Diet sodas and sports drinks would be sold in high schools.


“This is a truly bold step forward in the struggle to help 35 million young people lead healthier lives,” Mr. Clinton said at a news conference. “This one policy can add years and years and years to the lives of a very large number of young people.”


The deal was brokered by the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a collaboration between Clinton’s foundation and the American Heart Association, and involves industry leaders Cadbury Schweppes, Coca-Cola Company, and PepsiCo as well as the American Beverage Association, which together control 87% of the public and private school drink market. Officials said they hoped the other 13% would follow suit.


“I don’t think anyone should underestimate the influence this agreement will have,” the president and CEO of the American Beverage Association, Susan Neely, said. “I think other people are going to want to follow this agreement because it just makes sense.”


Beverage industry critics applauded the move but said it does not go far enough. A law professor at Northeastern University, Richard Daynard, said he had been negotiating a similar deal on behalf of the Public Health Advocacy Institute, which together with the Center for Science in the Public Interest had been preparing to sue beverage makers if no agreement had been reached.


“What they agreed to was very close to the final negotiation position we gave them at the end of March,” Mr. Daynard said.


Mr. Daynard’s only criticism was that the deal allows sports drinks to be sold in high schools. He said the drinks are useful for high-performance athletes but are “simply sugar water” for students.


Ann Cooper, an advocate for healthy school lunches who directs the food program for public schools in Berkeley, Calif., called the deal a good first step.


“Any agreement that limits high fructose corn syrup and sugar and non-nutrient foods that are served in schools is good, but I don’t think it goes far enough,” she said, citing the calorie content of sports drinks and some flavored milks.


A spokeswoman for the Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo, argued that sports drinks are beneficial to kids taking part of any kind of physical activity, not just for high-performance athletes, and contain carbohydrate calories that kids need.


The New York Sun

© 2024 The New York Sun Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The material on this site is protected by copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used.

The New York Sun

Sign in or  Create a free account

By continuing you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use