Keeping kids healthy is an absolutely unacceptable explanation for this.<p>I could think of more plausible reasons, but if the claim is taken at face value the direct implication is that schools have more authority to police kids health than parents. If this is the case, it would be perfectly logical to impose requirements for home diet as well.
Both the school and the journalist assume that their knowledge of what is healthy is reliable but in reality there is widespread disagreement about what constitutes good nutrition. This is one of the reasons why authoritarian approaches are bad.<p>However, it is pretty uncontroversial that <i>banning things</i>, especially highly sought after things, has unintended consequences.
I wonder how much more artificial and heavily processed ingredients those kids are taking in verses those of parents buying groceries and making their kids a lunch. It could definitely end being less healthy for a lot of kids, ignoring the fact that different people need different amounts of nutrients based on their diet away from school as well as other factors of their health.
Wait, the policy has been in place for 6 years and parents have recently voiced outrage? I wouldn't take this report at face value. Maybe some parents do not like the principal and is looking for cause to ruffle a few things up.<p>A 6 year-old policy probably has it's bugs all worked out, why the sudden change of heart?