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Would Warning Labels Stop You From Drinking Soda?
By
Lauren Evans
Published Nov 14, 2014
Modified Nov 14, 2014
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By
Lauren Evans
Published Nov 14, 2014
Modified Nov 14, 2014
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Do you drink a ton of soda under the assumption that you're actually drinking a healthful stew of carbonated vegetables? One Brooklyn lawmaker has picked up where Bloomberg's War on Soda crapped out, having yesterday introduced a bill that would require soft drink manufacturers to label their wares with their unhealthy side effects, which include diabetes, obesity and tooth decay.
Assemblyman Karim Camara, who proposed the legislation, points out that the ill effects of soda disproportionately affect children and minorities, and called the proposed legislation "pragmatic."
"This is not about an attack on an industry for the sake of the industry. This about doing what’s best for children and adults in our society,” he told the Observer. “We cannot afford for our children to continue to be overweight, to continue to have learning problems, to have health problems that may lead to difficult lives and at times illnesses that can lead to the loss of life.”
Big Soda has reacted with predictable indignation, saying they've already shrunk portion sizes, in addition to funding "health education efforts." Also did you know that soda consumption is down despite increased obesity rates? The two can't be related!
“Obesity is a serious and complex issue, but a misleading warning label on certain beverages will not change behaviors or teach people about healthy lifestyles," a spokesman for the American Beverage Association told the paper. "There’s a better way to empower consumers to make the choices that are right for them. If we want to get serious about obesity, it starts with education—not laws and regulation.”
Does raising awareness through warning labels not qualify as education? Soft drinks are a fundamentally useless beverage—they have zero health benefits, and like cigarettes, should be taxed to high hell accordingly. That effort was, of course, made back in 2010 by then-Governor David Paterson, who vied for a hefty "fat tax" to be added to sugary drinks. The beverage industry responded in kind, launching a $13 million assault on the basis of job loss at state plants, and that was the end of that.
If passed, New York would become the first state to require such labeling. It's won approval from Mary Basset, the city's health commissioner, but would have to pass through the gauntlet of Governor Andrew Cuomo and state Senate Republicans. Similar legislation was quashed in California thanks in large part to the efforts of beverage industry lobbyists, who played no small part in killing Bloomberg's divisive soda ban.
Tagged
soda
soda ban
soda ban redux
department of health
Lauren Evans
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