Requesting that the School Reform Commission prior to the awarding of any beverage contract a) hold a public hearing on the subject so that parents and students may give their point of view and b) give strong consideration to requiring the vendor to provide only healthy drinks such as fruit drinks with at least 25% juice and water without sugar additives.

WHEREAS, Currently the School Reform Commission is considering the awarding of an exclusive contract with a major beverage company; and

WHEREAS, While we welcome the much needed financial support from the private sector, we also have the responsibility to ensure that our school children’s physical health is as nurtured as their learning; and

WHEREAS, Nutritional experts note that one extra soda per day increases a child’s chance of being obese by sixty percent; and

WHEREAS, Reducing soda consumption in children may prevent obesity and other serious health problems later in life such as weak bones and an increased risk of diabetes; and

WHEREAS,

The

estimated healthcare costs of obesity in Philadelphia will be $380 million this year with a significant amount of that figure being spent on young people who suffer from being obese; and

WHEREAS, The Philadelphia Coalition for Healthy Children recommends that no soft drinks be provided in Philadelphia public schools and that all fruit drinks provided contain at least 25% juice; and

WHEREAS,

School districts across the country have had success associated with healthy beverages in vending machines, and there are positive examples of this even within the Philadelphia School District itself ; now therefore

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby,

request that the School Reform Commission prior to the awarding of any beverage contract a) hold a public hearing on the subject so that parents and students may give their point of view and b) give strong consideration to requiring the vendor to provide only healthy drinks such as fruit drinks with at least 25% juice and water without sugar additives.

End