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Let’s Move

Why Walmart’s Nutrition Pledge Really Matters

by Janet on January 24, 2011

walmart

It was hard to miss Walmart’s big announcement last week.  I’m sure you know all about it by now, but I wanted to offer up my point of view.

I tuned in to watch part of the webcast, which featured First Lady Michelle Obama who congratulated America’s biggest grocer on its commitment.  You can view the webcast here or read the First Lady’s remarks.  Here’s what the announcement was all about.  Walmart pledged to:

  • Make healthier choices more affordable
    Including slashing the prices of fresh produce (saving consumers $1 billion/year) and eliminating a premium price for better-for-you products
  • Reformulate thousands of packaged foods by 2015
    Reducing sodium by 25% and added sugars by 15%, eliminating all trans fats
  • Develop criteria for a simple front-of-package seal
    A consistent way to identify healthier foods
  • Build new stores in areas to increase accessibility of healthier foods
    Helping to eliminate food deserts in urban areas

Throughout the webcast and immediately following, I  noticed several cynical tweets.  Soon I was reading some less than positive blog posts, including…

Why We Should Question Walmart’s Latest PR Blitz by Anna Lappe, Civit Eats on Huffington Post
Walmart’s Nutrition Initiative:  Smoke ‘n Mirrors or Real Change by Fooducate
A Skeptic’s View of Walmart’s Nutrition Initiative by Marion Nestle

A few eyebrows were raised over Michelle Obama’s participation.  Some people dismissed the press conference as a simple PR stunt.  Others just couldn’t get past the fact that this was Walmart — an often controversial chain that has been criticized for its treatment of workers and dismissal of unions, as well as its mammoth size and impact on a community.

michelle obamaWhatever you think about the country’s largest retailer, this was a big deal. Sure, we can argue that this was a PR stunt, and it’s all about making money.  But still, these changes can make a huge difference.  Here’s what our First Lady had to say…

“…today, with this announcement, the largest corporation in America is launching a new initiative that has the potential to transform the marketplace and to help American families put healthier food on their tables every single day.  This Nutrition Charter promises a real change that can have a fundamental impact in how our kids eat, you see, because when parents have the information they need about the products they buy, that puts them back in charge, so they can make good decisions for their families.

When kids are consuming these products every day, those reductions in sugar, and salt and trans-fat can really add up.  When healthier options are finally affordable, that can affect every single meal a child eats, whether it’s adding fruit at breakfast, or whole wheat bread at lunch, or some more veggies on the plate at dinner.  And when 140 million people a week are shopping at Walmart, then day by day, and meal by meal, all these small changes can start to make a big difference for our children’s health.”

Think about it:  140 million people a week shop at Walmart.  That’s an enormous number.  But it’s not just the people walking through the doors of Walmart who will benefit.  The real significance is the trickle down factor.  Walmart is the largest customer of practically every food company in the country.  The pressure is on to reformulate or innovate — or you’re shut out of getting on the shelf at Walmart.

The real reason why this move is such a big deal is Walmart’s marketplace muscle — the power it has to ignite change throughout the food industry. Walmart is not only changing the nutritional profile of its private brand, it’s calling on all the major food manufacturers to get in line.  And they’ll do it.

That’s the power of this announcement.  Yes, it’s great that Walmart is reducing the price of fresh produce.  We need to encourage the consumption of more whole foods.  That’s really important.  But we need to face the facts, families rely on packaged foods — and we shouldn’t outright condemn anything that comes in a box, bag or can.  Let’s try to make these convenience items more nutritious — reduced sodium soups, cereal and yogurt with less sugar and frozen entrees void of trans fats.

We can nudge folks to eat fresh and prepare foods from scratch using whole foods.  But I’m happy to know that when they stray from the perimeter of the grocery store, they’ll have more nutritious packaged options to choose from.

We can do all the educating we want, but people need healthier options to choose from, and they need the healthy options to be affordable.  Why shouldn’t Michelle Obama acknowledge Walmart’s nutrition initiative.  I’m glad she was part of the press conference.  She recognizes that to truly change the way America eats, we need to tackle the issue from several angles.

I applaud Walmart for this commitment.  The bar has been raised.  That’s how positive changes happen.

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First Lady to Food Companies: Trim 1 Trillion Calories

by Janet on May 17, 2010

logo_letsmoveWith the goal of reducing 1 trillion calories in food sold annually by 2012, First Lady Michelle Obama made a major announcement today related to her Let’s Move! Childhood obesity campaign.

In a press conference today, Mrs. Obama revealed that the Partnership for a Healthier America has signed an agreement with the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation , which is a  partnership between 16 corporations that account for roughly 20-25% of the American food supply.

The companies pledge to cut 1 trillion calories from the food they sell by 2012, along with reducing fat, sodium, sugar and calories.   Take a look at the First Lady’s remarks below:

It’s been three months since we launched “Let’s Move,” a new initiative with an ambitious goal to help reverse the epidemic of childhood obesity in this country and end it in a generation.

And we built this initiative around four main pillars.  We’re moving to make our schools healthier.  We’re moving to increase the amount of physical activity that our kids get at school and at home.  We’re moving to eliminate food deserts so that every American can have easy and affordable access to fresh, healthy foods right where they live.  And we’re moving to give parents the information they need to make healthy decisions for their families.  Most often, these decisions involve the food that we – that our families buy.

Now, we all know how important it is to eat less sugar and fat and more fruits and vegetables and whole grains.  But we also know that sometimes it’s just easier to grab something quick and easy at the market. [click to continue…]

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Let’s Move America!

by Janet on February 9, 2010

logo_letsmoveToday was a momentous day.

President Obama signed an executive order creating a first-ever task force on childhood obesity and the First Lady Michelle Obama unveiled a new nationwide campaign to combat childhood obesity called Let’s Move.  You can learn more by visiting the Let’s Move web site and watching this video of Mrs. Obama discussing her signature project.

I wish I could have been in the audience today, but I did catch Mrs. Obama’s interview this morning with Robin Roberts on Good Morning America. She made it clear that with Let’s Move, she’s not trying to tell America what to eat, and she has no intention of becoming “the food police.”  In this video below of her announcement, she wisely says there’s a place for cookies, ice cream, burgers and fries.  It’s about balance and small changes — like replacing soda with water or skim milk.

The goal of Let’s Move is to bring together families, schools, private industry and government to make healthy living easier.  It’s about helping parents make healthy family choices.  Mrs. Obama outlined four broad ways the Let’s Move initiative will achieve its bold goal of eliminating the childhood obesity epidemic within a generation.

  • Healthier choices. Provide support to parents by offering tools and information they need to make healthier food choices for their families. The Let’s Move Web site contains a wealth of information about healthy eating, shopping and cooking — along with useful links.
  • Healthier schools. Encourage healthier food in schools through the reauthorizing the Child Nutrition Act, which supports the National School Lunch Program, and other strategies to help create healthier school environments.
  • Physical activity.  Increase physical activity among our nation’s youth (60 minutes of active and vigorous play every day), which includes modernizing and increasing participation in the President’s Physical Fitness Challenge.
  • Accessible & affordable healthy food. Make  healthy food accessible and affordable in every part of the country by eliminating “food deserts” in rural and urban areas. Check out the amazing new Food Environment Atlas that gives a state-by-state look at the location of food deserts and other indicators of how communities are accessing healthy food.

Here’s what others had to say today about Let’s Move:

Obama Foodorama
Rudd Sound Bites
New York Times
New York Times The Caucus

Here’s how you can connect with Let’s Move:

Facebook
YouTube
Let’s Move Blog

I think it’s important to show support for an effort like this.  It’s easy to be critical or cynical, but it’s going to take us all working together to make a difference.  As Mrs. Obama said, “it won’t be easy, and it won’t be quick, but we know the answers….We can decide to solve this problem.”

I agree. So let’s move!

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