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The June 22 article (Tax on sugary drinks may help cut consumption) quotes an American study that is extremely narrow (one cafeteria) in scope and does not reflect Canadian consumption patterns.
Obesity is a serious and complex problem and not the result of consuming any one food or beverage. In fact, no single food or food ingredient can be held responsible for weight gain. The human body does not differentiate the source of calories consumed to produce energy in active people or store them as fat in inactive people and people become overweight when the number of calories consumed exceeds the number of calories expended, not because of the types of food they eat. The fact remains that raising the prices on certain products does not make people healthier, but a balanced diet and exercise does.
It is difficult to draw a conclusion about the Canadian market based on US data when the consumption of soft drinks in Canada is only around half that of the average US consumption (93 litres per capita in 2008 in Canada versus180 litres per capita in the US). Soft drinks contribute less than 2.5% of a Canadian's average daily calorie consumption. The volume of regular (i.e. caloric) soft drinks sold in Canada has dropped over 21% from 1999 to 2008, with annual per capita consumption down from 90 litres in 1999 to 66 litres in 2008. According to Statistics Canada, about 18% of Canadians aged 18 or older, or roughly 4.4 million people, reported height and weight that classified them as obese in 2009. This was up from 15% in 2003.
Education focused on encouraging moderation and a healthy, active lifestyle, not taxation is the key to improving public health and to addressing issues like obesity.
Refreshments Canada is the national trade association representing the broad spectrum of brands and companies that manufacture and distribute the majority of non-alcoholic liquid refreshment beverages consumed in Canada.
For more information please contact:
Justin Sherwood
President
Refreshments Canada