Primary Urban Debate League Round 1 – Pre-release motion

The week beginning 30th January sees the start of the Primary Urban Debate League, which we like to think of as the Champions League of debating. You’ll be competing against other schools in your area to try and grab the top spots of the London-wide league table, and the competition takes place over two rounds.

Looking to the present, the first round contains two debates, the first of which has a pre-released motion, which is (drum roll please)…

THIS HOUSE WOULD BAN JUNK FOOD

Your mentors will be helping you prepare this motion in the next two sessions, but here are some thoughts, ideas and facts to get you started. As ever, feel free to post your comments about the motion.

Brief:

Junk food is a term used for food that has little or no nutritional value; this includes snacks, sweets and fast foods such as KFC or McDonalds. Junk foods are typically high in fat/sugar. Junk food is easy to obtain, and usually very tasty, therefore it is very popular with a majority of people.

The motion is THW ban junk food, which means that all methods of producing and obtaining junk food would, in effect, be removed.

Things to consider:

What goes into junk food?

• Junk foods are often high in saturated fats, sugar and additives.
• Many junk food snacks also contain artificial flavourings, colourings and preservatives
• A lot of non-chain fast food is deep fried in unhealthy oils, and contains high levels of salt.
• The quality of the meat is also suspicious – it may be highly processed or reformed, and probably won’t be organic or free-range.

Are there any alternatives to junk food?

• Many supermarkets sell convenient ranges of sandwiches, salads and snacks.
• Fruit is naturally high in sugar, but does not feel so “filling”.
• Making sandwiches allow you to choose what goes into your packed lunch

Who eats junk food?

• Junk food is very popular among young people, particularly since Jamie Oliver’s crusade against unhealthy school dinners. It is popular for students to pop into fast food outlets at lunchtimes and after school to get their fix, rather than have school dinners which are perceived as ‘boring’ and ‘not tasty’.
• It is said that among young people and lower social groups, “things like fried chicken have become the mainstay of their diets” (see “Britain’s fried-chicken boom”, http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/feb/18/britains-fried-chicken-boom). This is because junk food is cheap.

 Who are junk food adverts targeted at?

• Junk food is explicitly targeted at young people: children, teenagers, and people who work and are usually very busy. This is because it gives them and quick, easy and cheap way to eat and still be able to continue working during the day. Consider the advertising of Happy Meals, and the way that junk food snacks are positioned right by the checkout in supermarkets.

 How much does junk food cost?

• Is junk food cheaper than the healthy alternatives? A meal from a chip shop can be as cheap as £1.50, whereas a meal deal from a supermarket (Sandwich, crisps and a drink) is £2.50.
• But making your own sandwiches (a packed lunch) can be even cheaper.
• Sweets and chocolates are cheap enough to be affordable by kids with pocket money.

Useful links:

• http://www.kidcyber.com.au/topics/junkfood.htm
• http://www.fatfreekitchen.com/junkfoods/junkfoods1.html
• http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2005/03/23/junk-food-part-four.aspx
• http://www.nhs.uk/news/2010/08August/Pages/Junk-food-and-allergies.aspx

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