Board passes first reading of ordinance setting nutrition standards for meals sold with toys

Supervisor Marr introduced an ordinance amending the San Francisco Health Code to set nutritional standards for restaurant food sold with toys or other youth-focused incentive items and urged colleagues to pass it.

The Board of Supervisors passed the ordinance on first reading as amended by a vote of 8–3. The ordinance, as amended, removes a whole-grain requirement added in committee, clarifies that it does not regulate speech or advertising and states it is an incentive rather than a ban on tying toys to kids’ meals. It also phases in the ordinance over one year, with an effective date listed as 12/01/2011.

The ordinance’s author, Supervisor Marr, framed the measure as a modest, locally tailored step to address childhood obesity and food inequities, saying the proposal “is a baby step forward if we pass it today, and move this forward in San Francisco over a 1 year period to phase it in.” Marr cited national nutrition guidance and local advocates in urging approval, and named the Institutes of Medicine and USDA national basic nutritional standards as the bases for the ordinance’s nutritional benchmarks.

Supervisor Dufty, who described himself as a likely swing vote, urged support and described outreach the Board and advocates had done in low-income neighborhoods and schools. Dufty said he brought students from Hilltop High School to meet with advocates and industry representatives and warned of the possibility of a mayoral veto, saying he would “regret if the mayor makes a decision to veto this legislation.”

Board members adopted four minor amendments in committee and accepted the remaining amendments on the floor “without objection,” according to the clerk. The amendments: clarify free-speech/advertising protections and that the measure is an incentive (not a ban); remove the previously proposed whole-grain requirement; and set a one-year phase-in so the ordinance’s effective date would be 12/01/2011.

The author and supporters described broad community backing from neighborhood food-justice groups, public-health researchers and pediatricians, and from other supervisors who cosponsored the measure. Marr cited community organizations and UCSF researchers by name during his remarks. Opponents recorded three votes against the ordinance on first reading; the roll call concluded “there are 8 ayes and 3 no’s.”

The ordinance now will return for a second reading per Board procedure. Supporters said they view the measure as a local step in a broader movement to change the food environment for children; critics said the policy raises questions about the proper role of government in food choices and expressed reservations during the vote.