Lightfoot wants to crack down on childhood obesity

Chicago Sun-Times ^ | 12/15/2022 | Fran Spielman

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Determined to reduce childhood obesity, Mayor Lori Lightfoot moved Wednesday to stop Chicago restaurants from automatically serving kids meals with sugary, high-calorie drinks.

At a City Council meeting, Lightfoot introduced an ordinance that would prohibit Chicago restaurants from serving or marketing pop and other sugary drinks as the “default beverage” with kids meals.

Parents would still be able to request sugary drinks for their children.

Instead, the “default” beverages on kids meals would be:

• Water or sparkling water or flavored water with “no added natural or artificial sweeteners”

• Nonfat or 1% dairy milk containing “no more than 130 calories per container or serving offered for sale.”

• 100% fruit or vegetable juice or juice combined with water or carbonated water with no added sweeteners in a serving size of no more than 8 ounces.

• “Nondairy milk alternatives” that meet National School Lunch Program standards, contain “no added natural or artificial sweeteners” and have “no more than 130 calories per container or serving for sale.”

Every beverage “listed or displayed on a restaurant menu or in-store advertisement for children’s meals” would have to be one of those “default” beverages, the ordinance states. City inspectors would make sure of it.

[SunkenCiv]

• Lightfoot wants to crack down on childhood obesity [12/16/2021]