A sugar tax is a step in the right direction
AFTER years of false starts, it looks like the Government will finally introduce a ‘sugar tax’ on sugar sweetened drinks (SSDs) in Budget 2017 in an effort to combat the alarming rise in obesity among children and adults in Ireland.
However, the drinks industry is not going down without a fight and this week the Irish Beverage Council, the umbrella group representing companies that produce, distribute and market soft drinks in Ireland, have published the report ‘Sugar Tax: All Cost, No Benefit’.
This report argues that the proposed sugar tax will effectively be of no benefit to Ireland, will do nothing to help fight obesity, and will actually end up costing the Exchequer €35m annually through lost jobs and cross-border shopping.
It also claims that the sugar tax will add €60 to a family’s annual grocery bill. That’s right, €60 a year – a whopping €1.15 per week.
I’m sorry, but that’s a small price to pay if this sugar tax can make any inroads into what is a national health crisis.
That fizzy drinks are bad for you is not news. Likewise, that Ireland is well on course to being the most obese nation in Europe is not news either. But simply alerting us to these facts through health industry reports or high-profile conferences is not enough.
In 2014 a conference led by the Irish Heart Foundation warned that our health service was close to being overwhelmed by the number of obese children needing treatment.
Professor Donal O’Shea of St Columcille’s Hospital, Dublin, speaking at the conference, said that the obesity crisis is ‘public health concern number one... our children are getting fatter, and Ireland is leading the way in European childhood obesity rates.’
Last year, the Irish Heart Foundation warned in a budget submission that SSDs are the most consumed beverage in Ireland, stating that 21% of one-year-olds; 53% of four-year-olds and at least 75% of five to 18-year-olds consume SSDs. These stats are downright shocking.
Health experts are singing from the same hymn sheet here – a sugar tax is a step in the right direction. Depending on who you listen to, the tax will yield an annual saving of between €50m-€100m. Whatever the saving, this money needs to be ploughed back into education – for adults and children alike – so we can hammer home the point that SSDs are harmful to your health.
The drinks industry will kick and scream in a manner similar to the hospitality industry prior to the introduction of the smoking ban in 2004. But these objections need to be ignored at all costs.
A sugar tax has the potential to put the first major dent in our growing obesity rates. It is up to the Government if they want this to be their lasting legacy. Trust me, our children will thank them for it.