Falling Vending Revenue Forces Seattle, Wash. Schools To Reconsider Vending Restrictions

The Seattle, Wash. school board is considering relaxing its ban on certain foods in high schools amid complaints from student governments that the policy has cost them hundreds of thousands of dollars in vending-machine profits over the past seven years, according to The Seattle Times in Seattle, Wash. For the full story, click here.

Editor’s Insight: It’s hard to understand why so many school districts ignore the experiences of other districts that have reported revenue issues after these types of restrictions are introduced.

Schools are expected to educate students. Hence, when it comes to health and nutrition, they need to take an educational approach, not simply impose restrictions.

On 11-30-11 VendingMarketWatch reported that the city of Seattle will remove soda and snack from some city vending machines. Hopefully, he has made contingency plans for that revenue, since he can be sure it’s not going to be there with these rules in place. Consumers will simply buy the products they want elsewhere.  12-13-11 By Elliot Maras