Diabetes Canada says it is disappointed by the government’s decision to allow chocolate milk and fruit juices to be sold in schools again.
Last week, the Tories revised changes made to the provincial school nutrition policy by the previous Liberal government.
Jake Reid, national director of government relations with Diabetes Canada, said he thought the original changes were good.
“There were a lot of experts that were involved in crafting it,” Reid told our newsroom. “It was in the making for a couple of years since there was a review done of the old policy.”
High rates of diabetes in N.B.
Reid said the policy could have led the way for other jurisdictions right across Canada.
Sugar-sweetened beverages are the main source of sugar in our diet, he said, and New Brunswick has one of the highest rates of diabetes in Canada.
“This was not a universal ban on things like sweetened milks and sugary sweetened beverages at the schools,” Reid said. “It was a matter of what were the schools going to be allowed to offer and sell.”
Reid said one of the lessons learned is the need for better policy explanations in the future.
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Story by Brad Perry
Twitter: @BradMPerry
Email: perry.brad@radioabl.ca
(File photo)
