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This image of Meijer's checkout aisles is from a petition Michigan mom Jane Kramer is circulating asking the Michigan-based retailer to replace the junk food and tabloids with healthy treats and children's books.

(Courtesy | Jane Kramer)

BATH TOWNSHIP, MI - Michigan mom Jane Kramer is sparking a debate about what responsibility retailers like Meijer should take in the obesity epidemic, saying their checkout aisles encourage impulse buying of junk food.

Her online petition asking the Midwest retailer to replace junk food and tabloids in its checkout aisles with healthy snacks and children's books is garnering lots of media attention. It was covered by Good Morning America, and scores of news outlets.

She has gotten some online jabs from commenters on those stories who say the petition is little more than a push for a nanny state where parents don't have to take responsibility for telling their kids "no."

Those critics miss the point of her effort, says the Bath Township mom.

"I feel like there should be a supportive environment at checkout for everyone, that healthy choices should be a default," said Kramer, 47.

So far, Meijer hasn't responded to her petition. But the retailer with 230 stores across a six-state footprint released this statement to the media:

"Millions of customers come to Meijer each week and our goal is to ensure our offerings appeal to the needs of a very broad and diverse customer base. We are proud of the healthy choices we offer throughout our stores, as well as the fact that our customers can count on us for all of their shopping needs, whatever their buying preference."

The checkout aisles make up the store's highest profit zones, and are designed to elicit impulse purchases, says Josh Elledge, founder of the coupon website SavingsAngel.com.

He applauds Kramer for taking her concerns to her favorite grocer rather than lobbying the government to make a change.

"This is part of a free market system," said Elledge. "If she can get enough voices in support, I feel very confident Meijer will respond in some sort of testing environment. If the testing environment is a success, then it will get done."

With the media attention in the last two weeks, the signatures on the Change.org petition have tripled to nearly 1,000.



"If grocers want to get ahead of this, they should listen to customers like Jane," said Jessica Almy, deputy director of nutrition policy with the Center for Science in the Public Interest in Washington D.C.

$100 billion in health costs

There's a broader economic argument for retailers not pushing purchases of high-calorie candy, chips and soda. Junk food is considered a major factor in obesity, which has doubled in adults, and tripled in kids since the 1970s.

More than 100 million Americans are overweight or obese. Extra weight raises the rates of chronic health issues like diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

Diseases tied to obesity add up to $100 billion in health costs annually, says Almy, quoting federal statistics.

Taxpayers picking up the tab for 40 percent of those costs through Medicare and Medicaid, "is part of the reason that public policy is a not an absurd solution to the problem," said Almy. "If society is paying the cost of obesity, we should also try to prevent it."

Ninety percent of the food options stocked in the average checkout aisle are unhealthy, according to the nonprofit watchdog and consumer advocacy group's own study of Washington, D.C. area retail chains.

The group has its own petition with more than 17,000 signatures asking Walgreens, the nation's largest pharmacy chain, to stop "inducing people" to buy junk food at its checkout aisles.

Since its start in 1971, CSPI has been behind efforts to get healthier foods in schools by improving school lunches and getting rid of vending machines stocked with junk food and soda. Ultimately, change that began with school policy was strengthened by state laws and federal standards.

Jane Kramer standing in front of the East Lansing Meijer near where she lives.

Aldi and SpartanNash make changes

In the end, retailers will pay attention to their shoppers' buying habits, says Linda Gobler, CEO of the Michigan Grocers Association.

"We are a very competitive industry," Gobler said. "The retailers will respond to what the consumers are going to buy."

Sales are important in an industry where stores operate on a 1 to 2 percent profit margin, she added.

Gobler remembers the issue surfacing about a decade ago, and believes it spurred retailers to experiment with candy-free aisles and adding healthier options.

"I applaud our industry for all the effort they are making by focusing on childhood obesity and encouraging children to eat fruits and vegetables," Gobler said. "Many retailers have dietitians on staff who are brought in for special events."

A year ago, Aldi announced its was replacing the "usual impulse treats" at store checkouts with single-serve nuts and trail mixes, dried fruits and granola bars.

The "Healthier Checklanes" initiative has been met with an "overwhelmingly positive," response, and the Illinois-based retailers plans to have them in all U.S. stores by the end of the year, a spokeswoman said.

In late 2015, Michigan grocer SpartanNash began offering healthier options such as Clif, Kind and Brookhaven bars at its high-volume, self-scan lanes at 69 corporate-owned stores that include Family Fare and D&W Fresh Market.

The Byron Township-based grocer also expanded its healthy product offerings throughout the store by adding Living Well sections in 15 of its stores in Grand Rapids and Omaha, Neb.

"These store-within-a-store sections feature hundreds of health and wellness products, and the concept is being expanded to seven additional stores through June of this year," a spokeswoman said.

Kramer says this isn't the first time she brought up her concerns about unhealthy checkout aisles. She called Meijer's customer service department five years ago, but didn't get a response.



"I didn't want to take people's choice away - then I realized that it wasn't taking away choice because people aren't making them as a planned choice but as impulse shopping," Kramer said.

She says she has never had an issue saying no to her 13-year-old son, but that doesn't mean he isn't affected by what he sees. He was 7 when he asked her about "cocaine" after spotting a tabloid headline while in line for groceries.

The combination of pushing junk food that is linked to obesity and magazines that tout outrageous headlines and photo-shopped celebrities sends a mixed message to consumers, especially the youngest ones.

"It's like this toxic mix of telling us how we should look and this wall of sugar being pushed on us," Kramer said.

She argues a better business decision is to offer customers a wider range of options.

"Even if they offered one aisle, I would take it because it's a step in the right direction," said Kramer. "They would gain more checkout customers. I think it's worth a try."