Posted: September 7th, 2005

On Wednesday August 17th the American Beverage Association announced a voluntary school beverage policy (http://www.ameribev.org/schools/vending_policy.asp). The Strategic Alliance believes that this policy is little more than a publicity stunt and urges each of you to monitor and respond to your local media coverage by writing a letter to the editor, op-ed or calling a local reporter. The talking points below have been prepared for general guidance and can be used in several ways:

1) As ideas when talking to reporters

2) One or more of the talking points can be the basis of a letter to the editor or op-ed in response to your local coverage

We welcome you to share any letters or op-eds that get published with the rest of the Strategic Alliance membership by sending them to sana@preventioninstitute.org.

Talking points in response to the American Beverage Industry’s announcement of their voluntary school beverage guideline:

These guidelines are about PR, not students’ health. The industry has announced its new guidelines as political cover from much deserved criticism for their role in promoting unhealthy products. A growing movement of parents, school administrators and teachers are demanding that only healthy drinks be sold in schools. This is a threat to the soda industry.

These guidelines are weak. Many school districts and state level polices, including California’s SB677, are much more stringent and have been successfully implemented in many schools. San Francisco and Los Angeles school districts, for example, have banned all soda and other highly sweetened beverages.

These guidelines will have no effect on school beverage offerings. They call for the elimination of soda sales in elementary schools, but elementary schools rarely have vending machines, making this a moot point. They only apply to vending machines, ignoring the many other places where beverages are sold in schools.

These guidelines are unenforceable. The American Beverage Association, which authored the voluntary guidelines, is a trade association and does not directly sell beverages to schools. There is no enforcement or accountability mechanism in the new voluntary guidelines.

These guidelines are a distraction. Schools are supposed to teach children life skills. If children are being taught about health in school, and then being sold things that aren’t healthy there, it is not only a mixed message but also not in line with the mission of schools.