School’s out with the candy, in with fruit snacks

By Tom Hintgen (Contact) | The Daily Journal

Published Saturday, September 6, 2008

The Ashby Public School has a new wellness program, with no more candy in vending machines. In their place are beef jerky, cheese and crackers, fruit snacks and other heart-healthy selections. Soda options include caffeine free and diet. Others are juices, flavored water and Powerade.

This begs the question: How is this new wellness plan going over with the students?

“Initial reactions have been of acceptance,” said Ashby Principal Tom Otte. “We discussed this change with the students before the end of last school year, so as not to shock them this fall. Whether or not we see them continuing to use the machines as much here will be interesting to see.”

Otte said it’s the student council that chooses the selections and runs the machines.

“Money they collect at the machines is used by the student council to support Homecoming, Snow Week, J-term and other such activities,” Otte said.

Across the nation, many public and private schools are changing to vending machines with heart-healthy options. And in many areas, high-profile athletes and others are promoting these selections with public service ads.

"Through their programs and convenient distribution methods, school wellness programs can provide health conscious individuals with the nutrition they need around the clock,” said Jay Fiedler, pro football quarterback who has played for the Minnesota Vikings, Miami Dolphins and New York Jets.

In 2004 a national survey of vending machines in middle schools and high schools found that 75 percent of the drinks and 85 percent of the snacks sold were of poor nutritional value.

Of the snack foods sold in the machines, candy (42 percent), chips (25 percent) and sweet baked goods (13 percent) accounted for 80 percent of the options. Of 9,723 snack slots in all the vending machines surveyed, only 26 slots contained fruits or vegetables.

“It’s hard enough for parents to guide their children’s food choices, but it becomes virtually impossible when public schools are peddling junk food throughout the school day,” said Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) nutrition policy director Margo G. Wootan. “Many parents who send their kids off with lunch money in the morning have no clue that it can be so readily squandered on Coke, Doritos, and HoHos.”

For these and other reasons, Otte and others in the Ashby Public School system feel good about their new wellness program and the offering of heart-healthy choices in vending machines.