A recent report by the US General Accounting Office
found that the sale of soft drinks by schools or districts
under exclusive contracts are the fastest growing activity
of all product sales (23). More than one third of elementary
schools, half of middle schools, and almost three
fourths of senior high schools have a contract that gives a
company rights to sell soft drinks at schools (23). A recent
study of 336 secondary schools found that 98% of the
schools had soft drink vending machines available to
students (24). Although the revenue generated by schools
through vending sales and contracts with soft drinks
corporations are attractive to cash-strapped schools, it
has been suggested that consideration needs to be given