Healthy Vending

[mission vending]

For those of you that don’t know, in addition to my vending business I am also a partner in a partnership that has the City of San Antonio snack contract. This is a partnership arrangement that was created by 4 vending operators for the purpose of bidding on a large contract that none of us could have taken on individually.

I think it’s safe to say that healthier vending  is one of the predominant issues facing our industry right now. One way or the other if we are to survive as an industry we need to figure out how to make this work or we will eventually go the way of cigarette machines, typewriters and vinyl records.

Over the years, 7 so far, healthier options in the vending machines has become an item of higher and higher importance to the city. It started with Fit City vending initiative in which they created their own criteria to determine “healthier” products. Here is a link to the criteria that was established:

http://www.welcoa.org/pdf/vendingcriteria.pdf

The main drawback to this program was that its emphasis on fat and carbs to deal with obesity and diabetes created some interesting results.  

Things that are not considered “healthy” by observation, like Funyons for example, were considered to be a “healthy “item under the Fit City criteria.

So, over the last few months this issue has been moving to the forefront and now we are here. Here are a few versions of the same story.

http://www.ktsa.com/pages/7074143.php

http://www.kens5.com/news/City-workers-being-put-on-a-diet-when-it-comes-to-their-soda-choices-93492244.html

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7009756.html

In short, the city is mandating only diet drinks, water and juice in all drink machines and 100% “healthy” items in the snack machines. The city has agreed to change the standards to determine what is healthy by agreeing to adopt the Texas Dept of Agriculture squaremeals program that the school districts use.

http://www.squaremeals.org/fn/render/channel/items/0,1249,2348_14795_0_0,00.html

We are pretty sure that sales are going to go down, just how much remains to be determined. We are hoping that the loss of gross revenue will be less than 100K annually. Our biggest problem will be finding a product mix that meets the criteria and is stuff that people will purchase more than once.  It will also be interesting to see if people will stay away permanently or if they will eventually begin to use the machines out of convenience and necessity. Our gut feeling is that the sales will never reach the premandate levels again, but who knows? If we can come up with the right product mix and price point maybe we can meet or beat historical sales numbers.

We are entering this adventure with the attitude that there must be a way to make it work that we can be satisfied with and still give the city what it wants. So today I am seeking suggestions and ideas for products that you might carry on a local or regional level that I don’t know about that meet the guidelines or that you think might meet the guidelines so I can research it. Either post or PM will be fine.

Please, let’s not turn this into a discussion about the nanny state, food police etc. etc., it’s not productive or helpful. This is the reality I’m looking at and no rant or diatribe is going to change that.

Thanks,

Mike

[soco]

Mike, I've always liked Welchs Fruit Snacks  but you probably already use them...

[Gulp-It!]

I've found that Fiber 1 Bars actually sell better when I put  them in a spiral with a "Fit Pick" sticker on it.