Encouraging kids' participation in sport while allowing them to eat junk food will not work, opponents to the government's $82 million Kiwisport initiative say.
The government announced on Tuesday it will spend $82m over four years getting kids to play sport .
Prime Minister John Key said the Kiwisport initiative would provide $24m to primary schools, $21m to secondary schools and $37m to a regional fund to be administered by Regional Sports Trusts.
Fight the Obesity Epidemic spokeswoman Robyn Toomath said Kiwisport will be "great for some kids" but most will not continue to play sport once they left school.
Children's consumption of junk food and soft drink needs to be reduced to reduce childhood obesity, she said.
A system to distinguish healthy foods from unhealthy and stopping junk food advertising to children are also needed to reduce childhood obesity, Toomath said.
"To increase sport in schools without reversing the decision to allow schools to again sell junk food would be ludicrous."
The government needs to make it easier for everyone to be physically active by creating a safer walking and cycling environment, Toomath said.
"Money has been stripped from Healthy Eating - Healthy Action programmes to fund Kiwisport."
The government will need to show the initiative is working "otherwise children will be worse off", she said.
Labour's health spokeswoman Ruth Dyson said eating patterns as well as exercise need to be tackled.
"In reality the money has come from cuts to obesity, diabetes, smoking cessation and cardiovascular programmes.
"The Health Minister seems to think that kicking a ball around will help the one in five New Zealand children who are overweight or the one in 12 who are obese," Dyson said.
Key said funding for Kiwisport came from "savings" in the Ministry of Health, Education and Sport and Recreation.
The initiative is aimed at helping more children participate in organised sport, he said.
"Schools are a vital catchment area in which we can introduce young New Zealanders to organised sport."
Involvement in sport helps with physical fitness, teamwork and leadership, Key said.
The launch follows the earlier cut of Sparc's $15.7m Mission On programme - a package of initiatives aimed at improving children's nutrition and physical activity.
The government said at the time some money would be reprioritised to sport in schools.
In February, Education Minister Anne Tolley said she would remove the national guideline which restricted junk food availability in schools.
