Burger King Takes Soda Off the Menu for Kids

11 Mar 2015 --- US fast food chain Burger King has removed fizzy drinks from its children’s menus in the US, leaving just fat-free milk, low-fat chocolate milk and apple juice as accompaniments to its children’s meals.

Children or parents will still have the option to add a fizzy drink, or soda, to their meal from the main menu if they wish, but they will have to order and pay for it separately.

The move comes after increasing pressure on the burger chain to remove the options, following rival McDonald’s, who removed the soda option in 2013, and Wendy’s, which removed the drinks in January. Burger King did not make an announcement of the decision, but quietly introduced the policy. It is hoped that its franchises, which operate independently of the chain, will also chose to remove soda from children’s menus.

The obesogenic society, in which availability of excessive amounts of high fat, high sugar, high salt (HFSS) food and drinks are blamed in part for the rise of overweight and obesity among children, is said to have contributed to the rise in chronic non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, type-2 diabetes and certain cancers. By making access to these obesogenic foods more difficult, it is thought that consumers will be encouraged to make more healthy choices.

In the US, more than one third of children and adolescents are overweight or obese, a figure which has more than doubled since the 1980s. By removing the soda option from its children’s menu, Burger King will give consumers the choice to make a healthy option.

Centre for Science in the Public Interest Nutrition Policy Director Margo Wootan, said: “Soda and other sugary drinks promote diabetes, tooth decay, obesity and even heart disease, and have no place on menus meant for kids. We can applaud Burger King for taking this responsible step forward, and call upon their franchises, who operate independently of the company, to immediately follow suit.”