COUNCIL MEASURE IS NOT AT ALL SWEET ON SUGAR FOR KIDS

The Lafayette City Council on Tuesday night approved a measure barring local restaurants from advertising “sugar drinks” on children’s menus.

The initiative limits children’s default choices to water and milk, among other offshoots, such as sparkling water and nondairy milk alternatives.

It’s the first measure of its kind in Colorado.

A nearly identical ordinance approved in Davis, Calif., was the impetus for Lafayette’s, according to the city’s Youth Advisory Committee, the group behind the bill.

It doesn’t ban the sale of sugary drinks to children, officials say. But, they say, the aim is to discourage consumption of such beverages.

“Sugary drinks are a major culprit contributing to obesity and chronic disease,” Boulder County public health executive director Jeff Zayach said in a statement. “Efforts like this one help to reduce the amount of sugary drinks our children drink by providing parents with healthy options as the default.”

It’s a different approach than what Boulder voters said “yes” to in November — approving a tax on sugary drinks sold throughout the city — but its goal is similar.