A School Food Revolution

Look out potato chips, chocolate bars, French fries, and pop. More than 70 percent of Canadians support banning all junk foods, processed foods, and foods high in sugar, cholesterol, and trans fats from school cafeterias, according to a new survey by Food Network Canada and Decima Research Inc.

Of 750 respondents, women (84 percent) were more likely to support a ban than men (67 percent), as were university-educated participants over high school graduates. Fifty-one percent of respondents indicated they’d support a tax increase of $1 per week to improve the quality of school meals.

England’s Prime Minister Tony Blair has already put money where his mouth is by pledging £280 million to improve school lunches and also by promising to introduce nationwide nutritional standards for school meals.

To battle obesity amongst youths, Connecticut is attempting to rid public schools of soda pops and junk foods. The move represents the United States’ biggest ban of its kind.

In Canada, the overweight/obesity rate of adolescents aged 12 to 17 has jumped from 14 to 29 percent since 1978, reveals a 2004 Canadian Community Health survey. Experts agree it’s time to fight back…starting in schools.