Most U.S. adults favor healthy school food

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PRINCETON, N.J., March 17 (UPI) -- Two-thirds of U.S adults say they favor a law limiting food sold in public schools to meet standards for high nutritional value, a survey indicates.

A Gallup poll, conducted March 8-9, found three-quarters of parents with children currently enrolled in public school and nearly two-thirds of non-public school parents said -- if given the opportunity -- they would vote for food meals be of high nutritional value.

Fifty-seven percent said they favored such laws when the question specifies that the nutritional standards would also apply to food sold in vending machines, snack bars and at bake sales.

Public-school parents were less likely than non-public school parents to favor the policy when it specifically mentions the outlets for so-called "competitive foods" -- vending machines, snack bars, and bake sales.

However, Americans broadly rejected banning home-packed food. Eighty-one percent of Americans, including 79 percent of parents and 82 percent of non-parents, said they would vote against a law prohibiting students from bringing packed lunches or snacks to school.

The survey of 1,016 U.S. adults has a margin of error of 4 percentage points.