Last year Canaletas, a Catalan company focused on the design and fabrication of all kinds of water coolers and drinking water fountains, implemented this initiative in four pilot regions, installing their products in over one hundred schools in France.
Mundo Vending 12-11-2008
Last year Canaletas, a Catalan company focused on the design and fabrication of all kinds of water coolers and drinking fountains, implemented this initiative in four pilot regions, installing their products in over one hundred schools in France. This year, 2008, they added one hundred drinking water fountains more.
It is a project set in motion by the French government to combat problems such as child obesity. One of the goals of the project is to provide children with a useful nutritional education by teaching them the health benefits of water. According to a study published by
Obesity Task Force (IOTF), one out every five children in Europe is overweight or obese. In the report, experts point to the rapid acceleration in the rise in weight gain and obesity, from a reported 0.2% in the 1970s to the current 2% per year, which means that every year the number of overweight or obese European youth increases by 400,000. Within this context, France occupies an intermediate position with respect to other European countries. According to the same study, 18% of French children are overweight, and of them, 4% are obese. In Spain, 26% of all children and adolescents are overweight. One of the recommendations of
The Spanish Food Safety and Nutrition Agency (AESA) to combat this situation is to avoid letting children consume sugared drinks; water is defined as the best possible drink for a child's health.
Quality Control: Canaletas school drinking fountains have been selected from a number of manufacturers due to their unique suitability for children of all ages. Important factors in choosing this company were the security provided to the smallest children and the ease of use due to the flexible buttons, their extreme sturdiness for teenagers, as well as their durability. Another decisive element was the security certificates provided by external laboratories with European credentials which endorse the quality and security of the drinking water fountains as well as Canaletas' experience in the sector.
Jordi Morera, Chief Executive Officer of the company, expressed his satisfaction at the success obtained by his company in French schools and feels that this is a commendable initiative to fight against child obesity which should be imitated by other companies and organizations involved in education. Morera comments: "Water is, without a doubt, the healthiest drink, especially for children. It is the best source of hydration as it contains no caloric intake and no added sugar."
IMAGE: Canaletas drinking fountains are ideal for children of all ages due to their safety and easy usage.
