Editorial: Junking the junk food

Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2006 | 7:33 a.m.

Former President Bill Clinton, shedding his former reputation as a junk food junkie, has scored another public health victory.

Just five months after Clinton helped broker a deal with soft drink makers to pull sodas out of schools, five leading junk food manufacturers have made a similar commitment. Clinton, who teamed up with the American Heart Association to negotiate the latest deal, believes childhood obesity ultimately contributes to higher health care costs and hurts the economy.

It should be noted that Nevada was a bit ahead of the curve - perhaps a bit ahead of the bulge - last year when it implemented a statewide policy limiting soda, candy and other junk food in schools. The Clinton deal laudably seeks to make similar progress on a nationwide scale by enlisting the help of five food makers that produce the foods kids love - potato chips, cookies, candy bars and other snacks with scant nutritional value.

Under the agreement, Kraft Foods Inc., Mars Inc., Campbell Soup Co., Dannon and PepsiCo Inc. have adopted new rules that require them to stock school vending machines with food lower in fat, sugar, sodium and calorie content. Student favorites such as Snickers bars and M&Ms would be banned under the new rules, which prohibit any food with more than 35 percent of its calories coming from fat and more than 10 percent from saturated fat.

Some health advocates say the Clinton deal did not go far enough. They want federal legislation that legally bans junk food. Clinton himself noted that schools are still free to buy and stock whatever foods they want. But some of the fattiest, highest-calorie junk food on the market will no longer be available to schools. That's a notable victory in America's efforts to curb obesity.

When all is said and done, however, it is parents who ultimately are responsible for promoting healthy eating and plenty of exercise. Clinton and the food makers set a good example; parents should follow their lead at home by banning the worst of junk foods.