Unfeasible, impractical

“Don’t ask why healthy food is so expensive, ask why junk food is so cheap”. This quote has certainly made me think about what I ingest on a daily basis, and about problems such as obesity. The intake of fast-food and sugary drinks causes obesity, and it is essential to curb this problem.

However, there are various reasons why governments can’t resort to taxation on junk foods and sugary drinks. Firstly, it is important to understand when a government taxes a certain product, it cannot be over 35% approximately. A cola bottle costs around ₹70. An extra tax on it would take its price up to ₹85- 90, not more. Thus, taxation by the government isn’t going to make these foods ‘unaffordable’, and will not dissuade customers.

Secondly, obesity is a condition caused due to the habits of certain people, and taxation isn’t going to help change that. If a person has bad eating habits, he or she will continue to ingest junk food. Thirdly, a big question is what is classified as junk food, and what is not. Drawing the line between different kinds of food and having a taxation scheme is extremely unfeasible and nearly impossible for any government.

So, I strongly believe that additional taxation on junk foods and sugary drinks is impractical, unfeasible, and unhelpful from both a long-term and a shortterm view.