Mexican schools have six months to comply with a government-mandated ban on junk food or face substantial fines, authorities announced Monday, as the country tackles what they describe as the world’s most severe childhood obesity crisis.
The new regulations aim to eliminate popular snacks that have been consumed by Mexican children for generations, including sugary fruit drinks, chips, artificial pork rinds, and chili-flavored, salty peanuts wrapped in soy.
School officials who fail to adhere to the ban could face fines ranging from $545 to $5,450, with the amount potentially doubling for repeat violations—equivalent to nearly a year’s salary for some.
According to the UN children’s agency, Mexican children consume more junk food than any other group in Latin America, with around 40% of their daily caloric intake coming from such items. Authorities report that approximately one-third of the country’s children are either overweight or obese.
Previous efforts to curb junk food consumption in schools have largely failed. A 2023-2024 survey of more than 10,000 schools found that 98% had junk food available, 95% sold sugary drinks, and 79% offered soft drinks, while 25% displayed junk food advertisements.
President Claudia Sheinbaum announced on Monday that schools must provide water fountains and healthier snack options, such as bean tacos. “A bean taco is much better than a bag of chips,” Sheinbaum said. “Hibiscus flower water is much better than soda.”
However, the majority of Mexico’s 255,000 schools lack free drinking water for students. A 2020 report indicated that only about 10,900 schools—roughly 4%—had successfully installed water fountains. Many schools are located in impoverished or remote areas that struggle to maintain basic facilities like bathrooms, internet access, or electricity.
Although Mexico introduced front-of-package warning labels for foods between 2010 and 2020, alerting consumers to high levels of salt, sugar, calories, and saturated fats, the new rules will require schools to eliminate any product with even one warning label from their snack offerings.
It remains unclear how authorities will enforce the ban on street vendors who set up outside school grounds, where 77% of schools in the recent survey reported the presence of such stands during recess.
