Stand with Parents! Tell the USDA You Support Eliminating Junk Food Marketing in Schools.

If you can't sell it, you shouldn't be able to market it.

First Lady Michelle Obama recently unveiled proposed guidelines to eliminate junk food marketing in schools. Advertising will be limited for products that are not allowed to be sold in schools under the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Smart Snacks in School Guidelines.

Banning the marketing of unhealthy food and drinks will provide a boost to parents who work hard to instill healthy habits in their kids. It also will create a healthier food environment in schools across the country.

The USDA is currently accepting comments on the proposal, and you only have until April 28 to weigh in! Take action NOW and tell the USDA you support the proposal.
Dear Secretary Vilsack,

I appreciate USDA's work to improve nutrition and physical activity in schools, and I strongly support the "Local School Wellness Policy Implementation" proposed rule.

As you know, over the last three decades, childhood obesity rates have tripled. Most children's diets fail to meet the Dietary Guidelines, and few children meet recommendations for daily physical activity. Because children spend many hours at school, it is critical that schools adopt policies that support healthy eating and physical activity. In particular, I am excited to see that the proposed local wellness policy standards would finally ensure only nutritious foods that meet USDA standards will be allowed to be marketed and advertised in schools. We've worked so hard to remove junk food from our schools, so why should we continue to promote them?

I strongly support the following in the rule:

- All local school wellness policies should address specific goals for nutrition promotion and education, physical activity, and other school-based activities that promote student wellness. In addition, the policies should address nutrition guidelines for all foods and beverages available during the school day, and should only permit marketing of foods and beverages that meet USDA's "Smart Snacks" standards.

- There should be at least one school official who serves as the designated contact for the wellness policy and who has authority and responsibility to ensure that each school complies with the policy.

- A diverse team of stakeholders, including parents, school officials, students, community members, etc., should be involved in developing and implementing the local wellness policy. In addition, the policy and assessment of implementation should be made publicly available.

- Regular assessments of the local wellness policy, as well as annual reports to demonstrate schools' progress toward meeting wellness policy goals, are essential for ensuring that each school complies with the policy.

[Your comments will be inserted here.]

Thank you for proposing these much-needed updates to strengthen nutrition and physical activity in schools. I urge you to quickly finalize the rule, and work with schools to ensure full implementation.

Sincerely,
[Your name will be inserted here.]
Sign Petition
Sign Petition
You have JavaScript disabled. Without it, our site might not function properly.

Privacy Policy

By signing, you accept Care2's Terms of Service.
You can unsub at any time here.

Having problems signing this? Let us know.