The New Food Justice Agenda

Food Police The food police are coming to Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania State Board of Education is considering new nutrition guidelines for events at public schools, which would mean the end of cake and cookies at birthday celebrations in class. The new guidelines would only allow one birthday celebration a month, three holiday parties a year, and only one dessert per party; all other food would be ordered from the district’s food services. If a school didn’t comply, it would lose federal aid reimbursements, and the food police would remove school vending machines.

Earlier this year, we reported on the national attack against Happy Meal by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), which is ironic since science (i.e., an evidence-based case for assertion) does not support the CSPI claim that advertising has an independent effect on childhood weight gain.

Despite statistical evidence and common sense that says parents should be in charge of their children’s diets—it appears San Francisco, CA is going ahead with the happy meal toy ban.

San Francisco Supervisor Eric Mar stated that the city is part of a “food justice” movement, but giving government power over the diet of our children feels more of an attack on personal responsibility than justice. Parents are capable of making smart nutritional decisions for their children, both when deciding where to eat out and during school events.