On Jan. 9 the cafeteria introduced a new item on their menu at the “Sweets and Things” counter that left students with a disappointed pallet and starving stomach.

The cafeteria elected to burn the popular chocolate chip and M&M cookies off their menu and replace them with a fresh batch of multi-grain cardboard replacements thanks to a new act enacted in schools titled Smart Snack.

The replacement cookies are a smaller, cheaper, and a “healthier alternative”.  The new cookies are only $0.50, and 100 calories.  The new flavors include Double Chocolate Chip, Carnival (sort of like the M&M cookie), and Chocolate Chip.

But why, students ask, are the cookies gone?  The answer is simple.  The new health acts that have been enacted in schools that are now forcing cafeterias to rid their menu of everything over 200 calories. The beloved cookies however, were over the 200 calorie mark according to cafeteria workers.

Smart Snack was passed because of the rising rate of childhood obesity.  According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,18 percent of children aged 12-19 are obese. So to put it plainly, a minority group ruined it for the majority.

Instead of replacing the best treat on Perry’s campus with a multi-grain cracker, maybe Smart Snack could have considered a different alternative to teach us a lesson.  Whatever happened to moderation?  Was it impossible to make the cookies smaller?  Making the cookies smaller would meet the Smart Snack in Schools policy while also keeping the people who are smart about what they eat happy as these cookies were definitely a delicacy and every “once in a while” treat to most students.

The cookies removal is not just taxing on the student population here at Perry.  The new cookies “definitely have not done as good, but we are still selling.” says cafeteria manager Kim Metcalf.    While the new cookies are still selling, “sales are down 25 percent,” adds Stephanie Dobson, one of the workers at Sweets and Things bakery.

While the cafeteria does still maintain Chik-fil-A Tuesdays and Thursdays, along with French fries daily, and Gelato Thursdays, when will they too be taken away by Smart Snack?  And while it is not specifically our cafeteria’s fault, someone is telling us what we can and cannot eat based off a minority group.  There are other solutions to this problem besides completely getting rid of something the majority enjoys.