When we first heard of the school trans fat ban being proposed by Colorado lawmakers, we wondered: Are schools really still serving that stuff?
The answer, as best we can determine from talking to school officials, is that they’re not. School nutritionists are well aware of the health dangers of trans fats and have limited if not eliminated them from school fare.
As well-intentioned as Senate Bill 68 may be, we think it is a solution in search of a problem.
The legislation as currently written would have the most effect on foods sold for fund-raising purposes, such as the chocolate bars National Honor Society is selling or the marching band’s bake sale.
Just how would districts be expected to determine if the cupcakes for sale after school contained any trans fats? Further complicating matters, the bill specifies the ban applies to “industrially produced trans fats,” a designation that would exclude, for instance, butter.
The ban would either be unenforceable in those circumstances, or it would lead to the elimination of school bake sales, which would be an absurd result.
Bill sponsors tell us that portion of the legislation is raising so much concern that they’re thinking of writing an exemption to cover bake sales and foods sold for fundraising.
“I don’t know that we’ll get to the level of scrutiny where we’ll look at every candy bar,” bill sponsor Rep. Tom Massey, R-Poncha Springs, said.
Sen. Lucia Guzman, D-Denver, is also a sponsor.
In addition, the bill also exempts U.S. Department of Agriculture meal programs, which are the major breakfast and lunch programs in schools.
What’s left, for the most part, are items that school cafeterias sell separately, or a la carte.
Jane Brand, director of school nutrition for the Colorado Department of Education, told us these items get nutritional scrutiny as well. District nutritionists and dieticians are keenly aware of the health problems associated with trans fats, such as high cholesterol and diabetes.
“Overall, you just don’t see a lot of items with trans fats,” she said.
The same goes for school vending machine fare. While a lot of it wouldn’t be considered health food, that’s often a very different question than whether an item contains trans fats. Some brands of potato chips, for instance, do not contain trans fats, but almost no one would tell you they’re a terrific nutritional choice.
Furthermore, federal legislation signed into law by President Obama a year ago would seem to have the trans fat issue covered. The Healthy Hunger-Free Food Act gives the USDA authority to set nutritional standards for all foods sold in schools during the school day. That includes vending machines, a la carte lunch lines, and school stores. Trans fats are expected to be addressed.
Given the plethora of rules and regulations schools have to follow, and the fact that districts already are working toward serving healthy meals, is this legislation really necessary? We don’t think so.
