Michelle Obama Announces Company to Sell ‘Healthier’ Food to Children

michelle_obama
Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images

Former first lady Michelle Obama this week announced her latest initiative, co-founding PLEZi Nutrition in an attempt to “raise healthier kids.”

“I’m proud to announce the national launch of a company designed not just to provide better products, but to jump-start what I hope will be a race to the top that will transform the entire food industry,” Obama said while delivering a speech at the Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival.

Obama penned the “about” page of the PLEZi website, in which the former first lady claimed to have dedicated “so much” of her life to help children live healthier lives, pointing to her White House “Let’s Move!” initiative.

However, Obama claimed the U.S. remains in a “nutrient-related health crisis,” citing studies indicating that children are lacking in fiber and potassium and consuming too much sugar.

Former first lady Michelle Obama on stage during the unveiling of former President Barack Obama and her official portraits during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House on Wednesday September 7, 2022. (Demetrius Freeman/Washington Post via Getty)

“So I’ve learned if you want to change the game on this issue, you can’t just rally support from the outside. You’ve go tot get inside. You’ve got to find ways to change the food and beverage industry itself,” she wrote.

“So that’s exactly what I’m doing,” Obama continued, identifying PLEZi as a company which she hopes will “transform the entire food industry.”

The first product is a beverage called PLEZi and geared toward children ages 6-12, although Obama notes that milk and water are still the best options for children. This beverage contains “less sugar, less sweetness, and more nutrients like fiber and potassium than you’ll find in many drinks out there,” she wrote.

A quick look at one of the children’s drinks shows ingredients including soluble vegetable fiber, citric acid, ascorbic acid, sodium citrate, magnesium lactate, stevia leaf extract, monk fruit extract, zinc oxide, and more.

Obama’s announcement comes years after her “Let’s Move!” White House initiative, which focused on urging children to get more active and eat healthier.

Notably, images of lackluster school lunches become a staple of social media during President Barack Obama’s terms following changes to the National School Lunch Program standards, spurring both mockery and complaints.

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