KAYSVILLE, Utah – A group of Davis High School students are taking lunchtime soda into their own hands, and hope to send a message about restricting food at school.
Early last year Davis High School was found in violation of a federal mandate prohibiting the sale of carbonated beverages. The school lost out on close to $15,000 in federal funds. But junior Cameron Bettolo says the mandate also sparked a business venture between him and his friends.
“We buy soda wherever it’s the cheapest,” says Bettolo. “Then we just go from there. We charge two for a dollar, one for seventy five cents.”
Bettolo and his friends set up shop just off of school property, feeding the lunchtime soda need.
“Kids are going to get soda and sugar either way,” says Bettolo. “This an open campus. There’s like five gas stations like less then a mile away.”
A district spokesperson says the school is aware of what the students are doing, but don’t mind.
“The principal does know that they exist, and he knows they’re off campus,” says Davis School District Community Relations Manager Chris Williams. “There’s not a lot that he can to because they are off campus.”
For now it’s a lesson in entrepreneurship. Kaysville City says the teens did inquire about a business license, but the corner they sell on isn’t zoned for commercial use. Time will tell how long the group is allowed to sell out of their cooler.
