GOLDEN, Colo. (KDVR) — The City of Golden will soon be among the places in Colorado forbidding restaurants from offering sugary drinks as a default beverage in children’s meals.
Golden’s city council unanimously approved an agreement that will have Jefferson County Public Health enforce the ordinance.
“We feel there is value in offering education. The choice is 100% still there for parents. This will help parents offer healthy choices to their kids. And maybe not have kids putting up a fight when they see soda listed as an option on the menu,” Golden City Councilmember JJ Trout told FOX31. “Studies show on average, kids are drinking a bathtub full of sugary drinks a year. Hopefully, this is a way to prevent that.”
The Colorado Restaurant Association is concerned about the additional costs for restaurants.
“The CRA has asked for these types of sugary drink proposals to include the ability to list 100% juice and low-fat chocolate milk on kids’ menus to bring ordinances in alignment with the existing menus of national chain restaurants. This would alleviate the need to re-print menus for many locally owned franchisees and even independent restaurants that bundle drinks with food on their kids’ menus. Restaurants across Colorado are extremely cost-sensitive after two years of pandemic-related operational restrictions and decreased revenue,” said Mollie Steinemann, CRA’s manager of government affairs, in a statement.
The new ordinance goes into effect on June 1. It will require the default drinks with kids meals be water, flavored water or sparkling water with added sweeteners; or dairy milk of 130 calories or less without added sweeteners or flavors.