Alex Tabarrok over at Marginal Revolution points out that students at at Austin High School in Austin have given school administrators a lesson in the economics of “candy” prohibition:
When Austin High School administrators removed candy from campus vending machines last year, the move was hailed as a step toward fighting obesity. What happened next shows how hard it can be for schools to control what students eat on campus.
The candy removal plan, according to students at Austin High, was thwarted by classmates who created an underground candy market, turning the hallways of the high school into Willy-Wonka-meets-Casablanca. . .
During the prohibition, one student, who asked not to be identified, said that he sold candy at the school and made as much as $50 in a day.
“It’s all about supply and demand,” said Austin junior Scott Roudebush. “We’ve got some entrepreneurs around here.”
The Austin High administration, which won’t elaborate on how much or little it knew about the candy black market, has since replenished the vending machines with some types of candy.