England takes action against junk food in schools

This article was very interesting (even the whole debate about what is junk food and does it really exist,) and I was pleased to read that some governments are finally taking radical actions across the board to cut the bad foods off of our diets and substitute them with good foods.

The British Secretary of State for Education, Ruth Kelly, has launched something of a jihad against junk food:

At the Labour Party conference last week she made an impassioned promise that foods high in fat, salt or sugar will be taken off the menus and removed from vending machines in schools across England.

Schools have now just 12 months to wipe their lunch menus of junk food under a new pledge to improve nutritional standards, but there is more:

Schools will not only be "advised" to serve up healthier dishes: they will receive extra funding to enable them to do so - with the daily budget per child rising from around 37p to 50p or 60p - and will find their food standards being monitored by Ofsted school inspectors.

And on Saturday Ms Kelly warned that school governors who continue to serve junk food once the ban comes into force could receive a criminal record. They will be "open to the same sanctions as anyone else who breaks the law." She is clearly serious about junking junk food in schools.

Now that's radical! Unlike our dear leader, who legislates without providing the funding for the extra burden imposed (hello No Child Left Behind/States you're on your own Act,) this law would dramatically increase the funds for a school that adheres to the program.

Unfortunately, I'm afraid here in the States the food industry is way too powerful right now to see any such legislation passing the business-friendly GOP controlled Congress, but something is moving at the state and town level, so maybe someday all schools here in America will serve better food to our kids too.