I have mixed feelings about this announcement from Pepsi that the company will start to pull out the sugary drinks from our children’s schools in 200 countries across the globe. By 2012 only water, juice, fat-free and low-fat milk will be sold in schools to our kids and teachers.
I do applaud Pepsi’s efforts and I am grateful for this move especially since Coca-Cola – a company that reaches even more of our children – is only willing to make the same healthy offering to SOME of our kids (limited to primary schools). So I will at least give Pepsi the gold star for being serious about this initiative.
I also fully understand that they are businesses. They have a responsibility to their shareholders to make profits but they also have a responsibility to us – the consumers. I completely agree that we can control what we consume. (I personally hate pop and only drink it when it’s the only option) but I know most people love it. Many Americans I encounter were given pop to drink by their parents on a regular basis. This might have been out of convenience, cost or lack of information about the effects of drinking excess pop. It’s truly just as natural for some people to consume 8 glasses of pop as it is for others to consume 8 glasses of water. I get all of that. I really do. We are creatures of habit which is why when we hear about research out there confirming the alarming rates of increased childhood obesity, juvenile diabetes and other health issues facing our children, it makes me want to scream to Coke, Pepsi, and so many other corporations out there: WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG?
If a child is thirsty, they’re going to drink what’s available to them. When I grew up we only had water fountains. Guess what? I hated water but I was thirsty so I drank it. It might hurt your sales a bit when you make the switch to a healthier product offering for kids but I feel pretty confident in saying you will have almost as many delivery trucks out to replenish the dispensers as you do with sugary stuff! So why couldn’t you have made this switch sooner? Better yet, you would have played a role sooner in helping our youth adopt healthier beverage consumption habits.
It’s a shame that you have to be convinced to do the right thing.
I know I probably sound very naive but there is a growing number of consumers out there who are looking for responsible corporate citizens and they are making more conscious purchase decisions to support companies that are ultimately supporting their loved ones, even if what choose to buy is not the cheapest or most convenient item. I hope Corporate America takes notice.
What do you think about Pepsi’s decision? Am I being too hard on them? Have you started to think twice about what brands and companies you will support?
