Michelle Obama Takes On McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and More

The former First Lady is deepening her commitment to healthier options.

Since she left the White House in 2017, Michelle Obama has remained active and in the public eye, working to educate Americans about healthy living and even writing a #1 New York Times bestselling book, "Becoming."

Obama's "Let's Move," campaign changed the public school system's approach toward food and fitness. The First Lady's work helped to update school meal nutrition, increased funding for better and more readily available foods for students of all socioeconomic backgrounds, increased physical activity in many schools to up to 60 minutes per day, and rebranded the Physical Fitness Test to the Presidential Youth Fitness Program. 

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For those of you who didn't attend public school at the time, that fitness test typically included: 

• Sit-ups (timed for one minute)
• Push-ups (as many as possible without resting)
• Pull-ups (as many as possible) or arm hang (as long as possible)
• A 30-foot “shuttle run”
• The "V-seat reach" (to test for flexibility)
• A one-mile run

Michelle Obama Enters Private Business

And now, the former First Lady is deepening her commitment to the health and wellness industry as she takes the helm of Plezi Nutrition, a company for healthier food and drinks. 

Obama will serve as Plezi co-founder and strategic partner. 

“I’ve learned that on this issue, if you want to change the game, you can’t just work from the outside. You’ve got to get inside—you’ve got to find ways to change the food and beverage industry itself,” Obama said on Wednesday. “I’m proud to announce the national launch of a company designed not just to provide better products, but to jumpstart a race to the top that will transform the entire food industry.”

Plezi's first product, will be low-sugar, nutrient-dense kids' drinks made from a fruit-juice blend.

"The company’s first product, its namesake beverage Plezi, is intended to replace sugary drinks like soda and juice that do not support kids’ health and to help promote healthier habits. It targets school-aged children ages 6 to 12 when drinking milk or water is more difficult. The challenge for the company will be to do that with a product that tastes good and is actually something children will want to consume, especially if they are used to offerings loaded with sugar," Food Dive notes. 

Michelle Obama isn't the first to try and cash in on the healthy food and beverage market. 

Coca-Cola  (KO) - Get Free Report has made no secret of its efforts to slowly pivot away from sugar-based sodas and beverages.

In fact, the number of young people who consumed at least one daily sugar-sweetened beverage has fallen to 61% from 80% in recent years, according to a study by Harvard researchers.

While Coke may be enjoyed at most bars or McDonald's  (MCD) - Get Free Report on any given day, the soda-drinking trend seems to be waning among one key demographic: young Americans. So in 2017 Coca-Cola acquired sparkling mineral water brand Top Chico for $220 million; the brand continues to grow its flavored sugar-free beverage lineup and bets that it could be a $1 billion brand, similar to that of Diet Coke or Dasani, someday.

Similarly, McDonald's began selling apple slices as a substitute for less-healthy options, like french fries, in the early 2000s. Shortly after it began offering apples, other providers began seeing an uptick in demand from schools for healthier public K-12 school options, too.

"From 2009 to 2013, overall apple sales went up by 72%, driven in part because of the widening availability of fresh-cut apple packs," McDonald's writes. 

Other upstart beverage companies beloved by younger generations, like Poppi prebiotic soda, a healthy sparkling drink with zippy branding, are now valued in the billions. So it's very reasonable that Obama, McDonald's and Coca-Cola may find themselves as competitors in the very near future.