Tax on Soda Pop

I’m sure that Coca-Cola and Pepsi are doing everything they can to stop this one. If you haven’t read the article I’m referencing, click here.

Not that I mind having a tax on sugary drinks, but the idea is more or less flawed. In a sense, while soda, in the strict sense, is wasted calories, one must take into account the diet and zero-calorie categories of soft drinks that have come into play in recent years. A blanket tax on all soft drinks to decrease caloric intake would technically involve our beloved Coke Zeros and Pepsi Ones, and the last time I checked, the Boston Tea Party was the result of unfair taxation. For this proposed tax to meet its purpose, it would have to target all drinks which exceed a minimum calorie threshold.

Another facet of this ‘battle against obesity’ is really sheer consumption of calories. While soft drinks, as the article points out, make up roughly 120 calories of an average person’s excess, it really can’t compare to the damage done by deep-fried french fries and fast-food mayo. Cutting out just one order of french fries from a fast-food joint will remove over 300 calories from a person’s daily intake. Discourage someone from eating fast food and the savings increase substantially. Or, if we really want to target empty calories, tax alcohol. Granted, that’ll stir up talk of the Prohibition days again, but any health professional will tell you that alcohol is bad news.

Anyway, a tax on soda pop probably won’t come for a while, but if you have an opinion about it, feel free to leave a comment and I’ll be happy to return to this topic..