What do you do when you don’t have Doritos to get you through the day? Or skittles? What about the pop tarts? A few years ago, the vending machines in Heritage were replaced with newer, healthier options. A sad, sad day. But not for your hearts, because the FDA sent out a nationwide policy to increase the nutritional value of food in schools.

Mr. Adam has shed some light on the subject matter to enlighten the students at Heritage of the situation. When asking Mr. Adam why the new vending machines were introduced, he explained that the FDA introduced rules about what could and could not be sold during the day. “Any food that is sold has to meet requirements for fat, sugar, things like that,” said Mr Adam. “All the food in our cafeteria does qualify for that, all the food in our vending machines also qualifies for that.”

The FDA also introduced new policies regarding the times food can be sold in schools. According to these regulations, the school cannot sell food from midnight to 35 minutes after school ends. In Heritage’s case, this means from midnight to 4:38pm. Additionally, food cannot be sold during hours when the cafeteria is in operation. Mr Adam explained, “we took out vending machines a few years ago in favor of the healthier snacks, and also because we can control the timers on them.”  This ensures the new vending machines follow the guidelines sent out by the FDA by allowing the administration to turn the machines off during those hours.

The money collected by the vending machines also goes towards benefiting the school. “[The money] goes to a variety of things, like when clubs are starting up and to students who are in need of something,” says Mr Adam. So every time students buy a healthy snack from the vending machine, they’re not only helping keep their health in check, but also contributing towards someone in need.