Perhaps you’d use the money to pay down the budget deficit…

Build or repair the roads and bridges in your state…

Fund a food program for children in America who go hungry each night…

Send the money back to the states to pay for education…

Some folks think they have the answer on how to spend those dollars.  For example, Center for Science in the Public Interest Executive Director Michael Jacobson, who holds a Ph.D. in microbiology, just wrote an article proposing to spend a whopping $1.5 billion on “major mass-media campaigns to encourage people to eat less junk food and more healthful foods.” He also likes the idea of spending your money on cooking classes and bike trails (never mind that pothole you hit on the way to work today).

One and a half billion dollars is a lot of money to spend on a belief that people can’t possibly be capable of making decisions for what they eat – that they need the government to help them figure it out.

A recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll reports that only 13 percent of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing. So, do you trust them to make decisions about what you can and can’t eat?

There are many problems facing our country today. Obesity and proper health are problems we face as a nation. But we can make decisions for ourselves and our families each and every day without the help of lawmakers. What we can’t do without is their help is fill the pothole on the way to work, fund the music program at our local school or make a dent in the federal deficit. Priorities matter.

We partnered with the U.S. Conference of Mayors on this project to help communities address tough issues in meaningful and pragmatic ways.  Susan Neely, president and CEO of the American Beverage Association, was quoted in the news release as saying:

“We’re proud to be working with the U.S. Conference of Mayors on this initiative because of the positive impact it will have on families nationwide. We’re particularly excited to be growing community programs that are centered on reducing and preventing obesity throughout the country.”

The awards were divided into categories for small, medium and large cities, each including both first and second place honors.  An independent panel of judges evaluated the programs and selected the winners based on a number of criteria.  Check out the list of this year’s winners:

Large City

• 1st Place – Louisville (KY) Mayor Greg Fischer’s “Mayor’s Healthy Hometown Movement”

To support their Louisville Youth Advocates Program, a group of 50 young people who have assessed community needs will use that information to become advocates for change as well as young entrepreneurs by creating businesses that provide fresh fruits and vegetables to their “Health in a Hurry” corner store initiative.

• Outstanding Achievement – Houston (TX) Mayor Annise Parker’s “Recipe for Success”
The award will support their Rolling Green Market Initiative, a van that travels the city providing fresh produce to food desserts.

Medium City

• 1st Place – Allentown (PA) Mayor Ed Pawlowski’s “Fruits and Veggies on the Move”

The award will support a program that is the modern day version of the ice cream truck. A branded truck, loaded with fruits and vegetables, would travel to playgrounds and recreation sites throughout the city and offer free fruits and veggies to kids.

• Outstanding Achievement – Las Cruces (NM) Mayor Ken D. Miyagishima’s “Mayor’s 5-2-1-0 Fitness and Nutrition Challenge”

The award will support the Mayor traveling to every third grade class in the city to challenge the students to do four things every day for the next 21 days (according to the applicant, it takes 21 days to change/break a habit) including eating 5 servings of fruits/vegetables and exercising for one hour every day.

Small City

• 1st Place – Lima (OH) Mayor David Berger’s “Healthy Living Hubs”

The award will support Healthy Living Hubs in three selected neighborhoods that are high poverty food deserts. Children and families living in and around these hubs will be provided with fitness classes, access to fresh produce via food-mobile, nutrition classes and more.

• Outstanding Achievement – Patterson (LA) Mayor Rodney Grogan’s “Mayor Takes it to the Streets”

The award will support the creation of a farmer’s market accessible to low-income residents, improvement of play spaces and recreational facilities, and PSA campaigns that support healthy food choices and breastfeeding by new mothers, among other activities.

Congratulations to these mayors for their innovative programs!  This partnership with the U.S. Conference of Mayors builds upon long-standing work by the non-alcoholic beverage industry to be part of meaningful solutions to help reduce obesity by supporting nutrition education for children, strengthening communities and empowering consumers.  It’s another public-private partnership dedicated to making a real difference.

Everyone has a role to play in reducing – and preventing – obesity.  Our industry has stepped up to do its part. In support of the First Lady’s campaign, we launched our Clear on Calories initiative, making it easier for consumers to choose the beverage that’s right for them by placing calorie labels on the front of every bottle, can and pack we produce. And through our voluntary national School Beverage Guidelines, we’ve removed full-calorie sodas from all schools and replaced them with more lower-calorie, smaller-portion options.

These initiatives will have a positive and lasting effect for generations to come.

Our member companies are committed to being part of meaningful solutions to obesity. We’re making it easier for consumers to choose the beverage that’s right for them by placing calorie labels on the front of every bottle, can and pack we produce, putting information at their fingertips before making a purchase. Through initiatives such as Clear on Calories and our national School Beverage Guidelines, where we removed full-calorie beverages from schools and replaced them with more lower-calorie, smaller-portioned options, our industry is doing its part and providing real, practical help for consumers.

These are real efforts that will have a lasting impact, not a sound-bite solution with a fancy slogan and little substance.

From all of us here at Sip & Savor we wish you the best for the coming year.  Happy New Year!!

We’ve provided a lot of information about our member companies’ products and programs, including our Clear on Calories and School Beverage Guidelines initiatives.  And that includes clearing up the misinformation surrounding energy drinks and other beverage categories. And speaking of misinformation, sadly we found a number of articles out there this year that needed more information to complete the story – or just didn’t get the facts straight.

We covered counterfeit soft drinks, discriminatory taxes, over-the-top and outrageous studies and the misuse of federal stimulus money that is going to fund smear campaigns aimed at our products as written about by The Heritage Foundation and U.S. Representative Scott DesJarlais (R-Tenn.).

Fortunately, we share information from an industry that has accomplished plenty of good work and continues to be a leader in developing meaningful solutions.  We are so proud to be working with Knoxville, Tenn., on its “Do Your Part with the Cart” program – an initiative that will provide the option of curbside recycling services to thousands of residents.  We also covered some other unique and thoughtful recycling initiatives.

But, that’s not all we have going on in communities.  Across the country, our industry and its employees are very involved in their local communities.  Here in our backyard of the nation’s capitol, the American Beverage Association and the D.C. Beverage Association announced in September our support for afterschool programs run by DC SCORES.  Check out our blog post on this by clicking here.

And we can’t forget the myriad beverage options available in the marketplace.  Or how proud we are of Susan Neely, president and CEO of the American Beverage Association, who received the Seton Hall University Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations’ Global Citizen of the Year Award just a few weeks ago!

Thanks for checking in with us this year.  We appreciate you keeping up with us, whether it’s Earth Day or Food Day.  Every day we hope to provide you only the best and most interesting information from the non-alcoholic beverage industry.

We agree that consumers should be armed with information about the calories contained in the foods and beverages they choose. By placing new calorie labels on the front of every bottle, can and pack we produce, we’re helping consumers – especially parents – choose the beverage that is best for them and their families.

For more information and to see an example of a Clear on Calories label, visit the Nutrition and Science section of our website. And be sure to Tweet us or let us know on Facebook when you come across our new labels in your grocery store or corner market!

We hope the winter chill isn’t discouraging you from getting out there.  After all, you wouldn’t want to miss all of the lights!  We hope you’re enjoying the holiday season so far and let us know if you have other holiday themed videos to share with us on Facebook and Twitter!

The Dean of the Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University, Ambassador John K. Menzies commented on this great recognition by saying, “Susan Neely is a superb choice for the Whitehead School’s Global Citizen of the Year. Her life is a model of service and dedication. She is a perfect example of the type of servant leadership to which our students aspire.”

Neely’s strong leadership and spirited dedication has also been a model for the transformation of the non-alcoholic beverage industry. She has guided the growth of the beverage industry into a leader in public policy through such initiates as the national School Beverage Guidelines, a partnership with the William J. Clinton Foundation, and with front-of-pack labeling standards Clear on Calories, in support of First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move!” campaign. Through Neely’s innovative leadership, the ABA and our member companies have been an integral part of meaningful and lasting solutions to societal challenges.

We here at Sip & Savor congratulate Susan Neely on her superb work and dedication!

So, let us know if you have suggestions for what you want us to write about or questions about our products or industry.  You can comment below, or shoot us a note on Facebook and Twitter.

We’ll talk to you soon!