Boston, Massachusetts is outlawing school bake sale fundraising as of Aug 1 2012. It’s a done deal, however bake sales are the tent pole of school fundraising and the ripple effect of this will be huge. The ban is supporting their fight against childhood obesity. It also seems to be deeper than this because the ban is against all “competitive” foods. These “competitive” foods are sold during the school day by the students on school property. Is this the best way to fight childhood obesity or is this just another hurdle for school fundraising?
No offense but if the school board was really concerned about the fight against childhood obesity, wouldn’t it start with the school cafeteria? I mean, have you seen some of that stuff? However that gets into layers of political complexity and is a lot more than some people want to get into.
Middleboro School Committeeman Brian Giovanoni, whose board will discuss the mandatory meal makeover Thursday night, said, “My concern is we’re regulating what people can eat, and I have a problem with that. I respect the state for what they’re trying to do, but I think they’ve gone off the deep end.
The Departments of Public Health and Education contend clearing tables of even whole milk and white bread is necessary to combat an obesity epidemic affecting a third of the state’s 1.5 million students. But parents argue crudites won’t cut it when the bills come due on athletic equipment and band trips.
If the Public Health and Education departments recognize this as an actionable item, why are they starting with bake sale fundraisers?
I applaud Massachusetts for taking action on the childhood obesity issue, but this solution seems iffy at best.
Check out yahoo’s video on banning bake sale fundraising
