My kids and I are always hatching plans for (I’ll be honest, often overambitious) craft projects. So we’re in and out of stores a lot, picking up the often-forgotten small items to finish that star blaster or ride-on pony.

This actually happened: Last month my son and I were in a large chain store, and for the entire time we’re waiting in an endless checkout line, he’s bopping back and forth asking me for candy or junk. He must have asked ten times. What kind of position does that put me in, as a parent? Not a good one. 

Join me in asking one the country’s biggest pharmacy chains - Walgreens - to get junk food out of checkout lines.

I know! There is already a lot going on this year. I’m sure you’re moving at full speed shuttling kids to school, tackling new resolutions, and more.
 
Here at MomsRising our year has been just as busy, and we ask our leaders to prioritize issues that support moms and families.

On top of that, we are still moving full steam ahead building a movement for healthy kids. We won so much in 2016 that we can’t lose momentum now! 

Parents like *you* have been hugely successful in asking companies to do better. We’ve gotten soda out of kids’ meals at major restaurant chains like Burger King, Wendy’s, IHOP, Applebee’s, and Jack in the Box. And just this month we’re submitting almost 30,000 signatures asking Nickelodeon to develop standards for marketing to kids like its competitor Disney has already done.   
 
Let's keep it going! Join us in urging Walgreens to back up parents and families, and get rid of junk food at the checkout line.

It’s bad enough that almost *every* store has junk food at checkout. But a pharmacy? Ouch. Walgreen’s can do better. Their customers (like me) want better options, and we want to feel like stores have our backs when it comes to making healthy decisions for our families. One out of three kids in the US is at risk for nutrition-related diseases like diabetes―removing junk at checkout would really help.

And let’s be honest: now is the season when many of us will be in pharmacies, a lot. Our family has already battled two viruses and nasty colds this month.

Here are the facts:

• 74% of shoppers say their top health concern is “managing or losing weight”. [1]
• Yet checkout often sets people up to buy products that undermine their health. Over 90% of food items at checkout are unhealthy, composed of candy, gum and chips. [2]  

Placement of products is an important part of a retail strategy, and it intentionally plays on consumer vulnerabilities. Ever notice how candy is placed at a child’s eye level? Yep. And that strategy works: it increases children’s requests for those items. [3]. Every shopper must pass through checkout, even if they intentionally avoided certain foods or aisles in the store. And by the time most of us hit the checkout aisle we’re tired and overwhelmed, making us even more vulnerable to impulse purchases. (4)

We get it: companies need to sell stuff. But there are lots of examples of healthier checkout lanes that are still profitable. [5] In fact, three major grocery chains in the UK have already eliminated candy from checkout altogether, and in 2016 Aldi committed to healthier checkout lanes in its 1,500 US stores. [6] Stores can still sell junk food of course; just put it in designated aisles where consumers have more control.

As a parent and as a consumer, I prefer companies that back me up when it comes to the health of my family. We all do.

Every voice makes a huge difference. Can you join us? Please add your name now!

Thank you!

[1] Food Marketing Institute (FMI). Catalina Marketing. “Helping Shoppers Overcome the Barriers to Choosing Healthful Foods,” 2010. 
[2] Fielding‐Singh P, Almy J, Wootan MG. Sugar Overload: Retail Checkout Promotes Obesity. Washington, DC: CSPI, October 2014. 
[3] Almy, Jessica and Wootan, MG. Temptation at Checkout: The Food Industry’s Sneaky Strategy for Seling More, Washington, DC. 
[4] ibid
[5] Model Healthy Checkout Aisle Ordinance, Changelab Solutions and Almy, Jessica and Wootan, MG. Temptation at Checkout: The Food Industry’s Sneaky Strategy for Seling More, Washington, DC.
[6] Heller L. “Aldi's Organic Plan Is Great for Consumers, Dangerous for Competition.” Forbes January 28, 2016.