3 May 2006
Coca-Cola Co., PepsiCo Inc. and Cadbury Schweppes Plc today agreed to a stricter voluntary ban that will halt almost all soda sales in kindergarten through the 12th grade to reduce obesity in children.
The action limits beverages to 100 calories, with exceptions for some milks and juices with higher nutritional value, the New York-based Alliance for a Healthier Generation said today in a statement. It prohibits sodas from elementary and middle schools and allows high schools to sell diet sodas and other diet and unsweetened teas, low-calorie sports drinks, juice, flavored water and seltzers.
Ten of the largest U.S. school districts have already removed carbonated beverages from vending machines, according to Ross Getman, a New York lawyer and activist for the soda bans. States including California, Maine and Connecticut have also prohibited sugary sodas from schools.
The tougher ban was a joint initiative of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association, which established the Alliance for a Healthier Generation.
``There are no shortcuts to solving the obesity problem,'' said Dawn Hudson, president and chief executive officer of Pepsi-Cola North America, in a statement. ``It's a much broader issue than what students eat and drink. It is also about what they learn and what they do.''
Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Cadbury voluntarily agreed to the new guidelines along with the America Beverage Association, a trade group that represents beverage companies.
The soft-drink makers in early 2005 agreed to stop selling sodas in elementary schools, and that ban was extended to middle schools in August. The previous policy allowed carbonated sodas to be sold in high schools after normal school hours.
Schools account for about $700 million in U.S. soft-drink sales, less than 1 percent total revenue for Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Cadbury.
Shares of Atlanta-based Coca-Cola fell 13 cents to $42.11 at 10:51 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. PepsiCo, located in Purchase, New York, rose 35 cents to $58.30. Cadbury increased 3.5 pence to 550 pence in London.
To contact the reporter on this story:Mary Jane Credeur in Atlanta at [email protected].
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000087&sid=aU1tCCXgnjwQ
