The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) responded today to yesterday’s call for a new 20 per cent tax on sugar-sweetened drinks by the Alberta Policy Coalition for Chronic Disease Prevention. The CTF reminded lawmakers in Edmonton of its recent study that shows such taxes don’t work.
“It’s great that people are talking about healthy eating and prevention to save the health care system money,” said CTF Interim Alberta Director Colin Craig. “However, while several countries, cities and states have tried sugar taxes, they ultimately don’t work.”
Recently, the CTF released Sweet Nothing: Real-World Evidence of Food and Drink Taxes and their Effect on Obesity – an extensive report by journalist Peter Shawn Taylor on sugar taxes. Some of the findings include:
“If simply taxing pop led to reduced consumption and weight loss, Canadians would already be thinner. This is the problem when you try to solve complex health issues with gimmicky tax grabs,” added Craig. “The only thing this pop tax is going to make thinner is your wallet.”
To see the CTF’s report – click here
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