EINNEWS, November 24—Well, kids in San Francisco still can get toys with their happy meals. But only of those meals have reduced calories, salt, fat and sugar and include fruit and vegetables.
That’s now the law in San Francisco, the Board of Supervisors having voted 8-3 to override a veto by Mayor Gavin Newsom.
The restrictions are set to take effect in December 2011.
The law was vigorously opposed by McDonald’s and the fast food industry, which could yet go to court to get it overturned. The restriction is intended to combat childhood obesity and hold “the fast-food industry accountable to creating healthier choices for our kids,” according to the measure’s sponsor, Supervisor Eric Mar.
In his veto message on the toy ban, Newsom said that although it is well-intentioned, it goes too far. Parents, not the government, he said, should make the call on what their children eat.
But backers say the law doesn’t stop the sale of kids meals; instead it creates an incentive for restaurants to revamp their recipes to meet healthier nutritional standards if they want to give away the toys.
For more fast food news, visit Fast Food News Today (http://fastfood.einnews.com), a fast food media monitoring service from EIN News.
