High schools brace for possible soda ban

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Doug Carroll

The Arizona Republic

Chandler High School is caught between Coke and Pepsi and trying to find a happy medium.

The school has a contract with Coca-Cola for its food service, but its vending machines sell Pepsi products, including sports drinks and bottled water.

However, the huge beverage-company profits of yore, based on the sale of sugary soft drinks, may be thinning as high schools such as Chandler prepare for the possibility of vending restrictions like those already in place at elementary and middle schools that never have sold soda.

Although a recent report indicates that the majority of the revenue from school beverage contracts goes to the companies and not to schools, the pie seems to be shrinking for both sides.

"The soda companies make more money from soda than from juice," said Craig Pletenik, spokesman for the Phoenix Union High School District.

Last year, Phoenix Union eliminated sodas from its machines and now sells only sports drinks, fruit juices and bottled water. Pletenik said the decision was made to bite the bullet and get out ahead of what may be coming in regulations.

"It was just the right thing to do," he said, "and if the only (obstacle) were fund-raising, our superintendent said he'd make it right."

Pletenik said a high school typically made about $40,000 a year from all of its vending machines, and he said the soda ban did take a hefty bite of that, perhaps as much as one-third for some schools.

"The sense was that it would be devastating, because it's one less revenue source," he said. "But the reality is that kids were buying other (beverages)."

Currently, a junk-food ban applies only to K-8 schools but there is a push at the state level to bring the high schools in on it.

Terry Williams, Chandler High's principal, said students at his school have been making the transition from soda to other drinks. He said the intake from vending machines usually is controlled by the student council; clubs can petition for a share of the money to apply toward their activities. A machine in the faculty lounge supplies a "sunshine fund" for special occasions for teachers.

"Schools with closed campuses can make more from their machines," Williams said. "Our kids can go off campus for lunch."

A report released in December by two consumer-advocacy groups analyzed 120 school beverage contracts in 16 states, but not Arizona. According to the report, the deals generally were not very beneficial for schools, raising an average of only $18 per student per year.

"When a kid puts a dollar in a soft-drink vending machine, the school is lucky to keep 33 cents," said Margo Wootan, a spokeswoman for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which was one of the groups that conducted the study. "And the money comes from parents' and kids' pocketbooks."

The American Beverage Association had a different take.

"The beverage industry has stepped up and led on school wellness, as the first industry to adjust what it sells in schools," said Susan Neely, president and CEO of the association.

Moves have been made to remove non-diet soft drinks from a number of school districts, including those in Boston, Chicago, the District of Columbia, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0117edvend0117.html

[mrc 0]

They've been talking about this for a while...a lot of high schools have already done it. I say it's a great move.

IT'S MORE HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP FOR US!!!!!!

Edited January 17, 2007 by mrc

[one...two...tree 2,762]

They've been talking about this for a while...a lot of high schools have already done it. I say it's a great move.

IT'S MORE HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP FOR US!!!!!!

What happened to this country that schools must get corporate sponsorship just to raise money? We've sold our kids to corporations because we don't want to pay more taxes for schools. What a shame.

[almaty 19]

whoring

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

whoring

shameless at that!

Daniel

:energetic:

[Robor007 0]

So they want to ban sodas but they allow sports drinks and fruit juices? That makes perfect sense. Ever read the ingredients on sports drinks and 'fruit' juices?

[KiKi 0]

They've already done this at my son's school...no soda but still have sports drinks , juice etc.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

So they want to ban sodas but they allow sports drinks and fruit juices? That makes perfect sense. Ever read the ingredients on sports drinks and 'fruit' juices?

We need to flat out ban corporate sponsorship in schools. Raise taxes as needed to pay for schools.

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

So they want to ban sodas but they allow sports drinks and fruit juices? That makes perfect sense. Ever read the ingredients on sports drinks and 'fruit' juices?

We need to flat out ban corporate sponsorship in schools. Raise taxes as needed to pay for schools.

and reign in those supervisor/amangement salaries. them be outrageous!

Daniel

:energetic:

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Corporate Philanthropy

"Education-related corporate philanthropy last year ['96] added up to $1.3 billion, or 20 percent of the $6.5 billion corporations gave overall, according to Craig Smith, director of Corporate Citizen, a research group based in Seattle. A decade ago, education accounted for only 5 percent of corporate giving, Mr. Smith said. He defines the education category as 'K-to-12 education plus school-related non-profits like the PTAs or Junior Achievement.'" (NYT Education Life, 1/5/97)

In-School Advertising

Book covers, billboards in school corridors, calendars, and broadcasts --these are some of the places corporate America places ads for kids to see in school. Commercial messages also reach kids in the classroom through ad bearing and corporate-sponsored educational materials.

* Cover Concepts Marketing Services Inc, book covers with ads to over 8,000 public schools; advertisers include Nike, Gitano, FootLocker, Pepsi. Steven Shulman, President. Braintree, MA.

* Sampling Corporation of America. SCA distributes 'goody bags' filled with product samples, coupons and educational pamphlets. Clients include Procter & Gamble, General Mills and Hershey. Steve Kaplan, president. Glenville, IL.

* Scholastic Inc. Offers corporations the opportunity to advertise in its Teen Network of magazines, distributed to 23 million students. Also publishes books, textbooks, supplementary educational materials and SEMs. Rick Delano, Director Education Marketing Group. New York.

* Star Broadcasting, Radio broadcasts with local commercials solicited by students; participating schools get $5,000-10,000. Pat DiPlacido, President. Bloomington, MN.

* Adopt-A-School, Hallway posters with corporate logos; schools get 50% of ad revenues. Jerry Coleman, President. Winter Park, FL.

Channel One

Eight Million students are required to watch a commercial filled current events program every day. Schools get satellite dishes, VCRs and TVs in exchange for providing a captive audience

* Channel One Communications, Founded by Chris Whittle who sold it to K-III Communications, Inc., which is in turn a property of Kohlberg, Kravis & Roberts. KKR also owns: PE TV, promotional single-sponsor TV program for schools

Lunch Programs

* American School Food Service Association estimates that about 13% of nation's 86,000 public schools now sell fast foodWSJ, 9/15/97

* Some items don't meet USDA nutrition standards and thus aren't eligible for reimbursement under the federal school-lunch program.

* Pizza Hut / Taco Bell (Pepsico)

* Arby's

* Subway

Conservative Think Tanks that Shape Education Industry Policy

* Heritage Foundation

* Educational Excellence Network, founded as a smaller think tank within the Hudson Institute by Chester Finn and Diane Ravitch-former Education Department. officials in Reagan / Bush Administrations-to serve as "a clearinghouse and resource center" for the Institutes's projects. One Such project was The Modern Red Schoolhouse [see below], designed by the New American Schools Development Corporation (NASDC), which was formed during the Bush Administration 1992 to funnel business dollars to education reform. Former Education Secretary Lamar Alexander placed David Kearns, former Deputy Secretary of Education and Xerox Chief, in charge of NASDC. (Nation, Sept. 8/15, '97)

* Modern Red Schoolhouse is one of nine prototypes that schools can purchase for curriculum, assessment, professional development and technology 'as a learning and instructional management tool' (Nation, Sept. 8/15,'97 )

* Landmark Legal Foundation, whose mission is to challenge "arbitrary, government-imposed barriers to entrepreneurial opportunity."

* Fundamental Change in Education, Massachusetts. CEO, William Edgerly also on board of Pioneer Institute, which promotes charter schools in the state. Pioneer publishes the Massachusetts Charter School Handbook, and sponsors seminars bringing together entrepreneurs selling curriculum packages, management systems and assessment and evaluation programs. "Conservatives want to 'outsource' these functions as part of an effort to neutralize 'the government monopoly on education."' (Nation, Sept. 8-15,'97) Pioneer Institute founder Steven Wilson also founder of Advantage Schools, a for-profit education company whose board Edgerly chairs.

http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=3028

[ChristinaM 0]

So they want to ban sodas but they allow sports drinks and fruit juices? That makes perfect sense. Ever read the ingredients on sports drinks and 'fruit' juices?

We need to flat out ban corporate sponsorship in schools. Raise taxes as needed to pay for schools.

Agreed - with both points. If you're going to sell juice, make it good juice. And those sports drinks are lethal - get them out.

I'm not into taxing the hell out of people for the sake of it, but damn, the education system needs money here people. These kids are the future of America, somethings are worth spending money on - IMHO.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

So they want to ban sodas but they allow sports drinks and fruit juices? That makes perfect sense. Ever read the ingredients on sports drinks and 'fruit' juices?

We need to flat out ban corporate sponsorship in schools. Raise taxes as needed to pay for schools.

Agreed - with both points. If you're going to sell juice, make it good juice. And those sports drinks are lethal - get them out.

I'm not into taxing the hell out of people for the sake of it, but damn, the education system needs money here people. These kids are the future of America, somethings are worth spending money on - IMHO.

It's a battle because there a some who believe in dismantling public education and making it all private. The typical rhetoric of bureaucracy gets tossed around when talking about the pitfalls of public education. Some believe that without a profit motive, nothing can ever be achieved in excellence. I believe that's a load of #######.

Edited January 17, 2007 by Steven_and_Jinky