From Forbes:Prepaid cafeteria accounts have been around for five to 10 years, but programs that allow parents to say what their kids can or can't eat are a more recent development, said Erik Peterson, spokesman for the Washington-based School Nutrition Association. His organization did not have exact figures on how many school districts use such programs.
The Pearland school district just outside Houston set up one of the systems at its 17 campuses in August.
"Overall, it's benefited everyone. Students go through the line faster. It's good for parents because they can track what their kids are spending," said Dorothy Simpson, food service director for Pearland schools.
The system, which will cost the Houston district $5.3 million, also serves as an accounting program that lets the school district plan menus and allows for faster enrollment of students in free and reduced lunch programs.
School officials and nutrition experts say this type of monitoring program could help tackle child obesity.
In the past 20 years, the number of overweight children ages 6 to 11 more than doubled and the number of overweight adolescents ages 12 to 19 more than tripled, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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