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LAST MONTH A report entitled “Sugar Reduction: the Evidence for Action” published by Public Health England (PHE) was leaked to The Guardian. The report stated that too much sugar is being consumed by the British public and that this is bad for their health.
Several key recommendations were outlined on how to best tackle this problem. Recommendation number five of eight is as follows: ”Introduction of a price increase of a minimum of 10-20% on high sugar products through the use of a tax or levy such as on full sugar soft drinks, based on the emerging evidence of the impact of such measures in other countries”.
This is a recommendation that has been consistently called for in England, most notably by the British Medical Association.
The emergence of this report and more specifically, this recommendation by the PHE was the cause of much embarrassment for the current British government. The reason for this is that the current government has not introduced a sugar tax despite several opportunities. On top of this, the report was delayed by the secretary for health, Jeremy Hunt, meaning that a parliamentary health committee conducting an inquiry into childhood obesity did not have access to the report when they began taking evidence.
On 13 October, the Irish Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, announced the current government’s budget for the year 2016. Prior to announcing this budget the Minister for Health Leo Varadkar wrote to Noonan to suggest a 20% tax on sugar-sweetened drinks be introduced, stating that it was his personal view as well as the view of Ireland’s chief medical officer that the tax should be introduced.
This was a repetition of events from 2014, when the then-Minister for Health James Reilly, citing an action committee report, proposed a 20% tax of sugar-sweetened drinks. On both occasions Michael Noonan rejected the suggestion.
Leo Varadkar offered no explanation as to why the sugar-tax did not make it into the budget. He instead stated that he was disappointed and that a working group would be put in place to establish a proposal for next year’s budget.
Clearly this decision is contradictory to medical opinion but perhaps it was made as a democratic decision? Maybe the public wants the freedom to choose to eat unhealthily? No, this is not the case.
In a poll by the Irish Heart Foundation in September it was found that 58% of the public were in favour of a sugar tax, with that number rising to 76% if the tax revenue was directly spent on healthy eating initiatives.
However, maybe Ireland’s problems with obesity and sugar consumption are not as bad as Great Britain’s, and therefore don’t require urgent address? Once again, this is not the case. PHE reports that 12-15% of the English population’s energy intake comes from sugar.
Dietician Ruth Charles estimates that for the Irish population this figure lies at 14.7%. PHE reports that 59% of the English public are overweight or obese, while the Irish Department of Health found that 60% of the Irish public are overweight or obese. Not only that, but the WHO forecasts that Ireland is on track to become the most obese country in Europe, with 87% of adults expected to be overweight by 2030 if current trends continue.
But hold on, maybe it won’t be as big a problem for Ireland financially? Yet again, this is not true: obesity is estimated to cost the NHS €113.87 per capita, while it is estimated to cost the HSE €239 per capita.
Contrary to all available evidence, the sugar tax was not introduced in the 2016 budget – why was this and why wasn’t there a public outcry? It seems clear that a sugar tax, in conjunction with several other measures, can lead to a healthier and more economically efficient society.
So perhaps the Irish government can give a lesson to their British counterparts; next time don’t suppress evidence that is both overwhelming and objective, instead just ignore it.
James Larkin is a masters student of global health in University College London.
What do you think?
Poll: Do you agree with a sugar tax being introduced?
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Bottled water is an outrageous price, it should be about 1/10 the price of that sugary shite.
Its more expensive than petrol and diesel.
Maybe a system should be in place where water was available in unlimited quantities in every house and workplace. ‘On tap’ I think is the phrase.
(Yes, I do realise there are some boil notices, and yes, I am aware you do have to pay for it. But not a bloody euro a bottle).
Bottled water only sells for what people are willing to pay for it. Clearly its not too expensive as people still buy it despite a free alternative being available in almost every building.
Taxing sugar is not going to solve the problem. Changing peoples lifestyle is one way but the countrys infrastructure needs to change toencourage this.
More playgrounds are needed, they should be in every neighbourhood. What I witness is one playground in a town and kids get drive there for an hour or two once a week.The sedentary lifestyle is already being instilled into children.
more and better footpaths, sprawling estates often have only one circutous pathway in.
Cycling is treated as an extreme sport in this country, more cycle routes and protection of cyclists is needed, not a rabble what abouting red lights and helmets.
Our towns need more pedestrianisation and traffic calming measures, take back the streets from cars, get people used to walking to places again instead of being afraid of being run over.
Open the countryside, look at countries like Germany and Switzerland, the country side is riddled with a network of pathways connected to every town and village making it easy and enjoyable for familys to go for a stroll at weekends or in the evening.
If tax was the answer nobody would be smoking, drinking or buying petrol anymore.
What do you expect, “it doesn’t just fall from the sky”.
I’ve a private water supply, water from the tap is fine. I can not drink the pis*s that comes out of taps in town
I’d agree with the sugar tax if I had bonafide proof year on year that that money in its entirety was being spent on health and in particular in areas such as diabetes
I buy bottled water for the simple reason that the water from the tap tastes disgusting. I often wonder what the hell is in it because as far as I know water should be colourless, odourless and tasteless. The whole water system in this country is ridiculous. Some people have lovely water, others have to boil it to safely drink it, and everything in between.
You can buy two litres of Ballygowan for €1 in most shops.. That’s hardly outrageous…
You’d swear tap water was poisonous!
Tapwater’s fine of course, I personally find it a bit chlorine-y …. but that’s just my own preference.
If anyone doesn’t like tapwater, they can buy 2L of Dunnes brand stuff for 49c. I’m sure Aldi probably go one better.
And if people want to spend €1.50 on a 33cl bottle of Evian, that’s their decision!
How about making healthier food cheaper. Or incentives for people to use bikes or walk to school/work. Better cycle lanes ect. But no…just create a tax. Ireland’s answer to everthing…tax
I get where you are coming from. However cycling to school won’t undo the date that is being done by sugar. The only way to bring about meaningful change is to tax it. It is the only correct course of action.
This Government is not interested in your Well Being. It sole purpose is to extract as much of your money of you as possible.
Well I’ve noticed that the price of a chocolate bar has gone up by about 30c in 2 years. That’s obviously more than a tax rise but it’s doing nothing to reduce the waist line. Only increase companies bottom line. Education is also important, as is cooking lessons.
agreed. .Instead of a sugar tax, reduce tax on healthier alternatives or at least a combination of both! but we all know the government will jump on any opportunity to introduce new/higher taxes!!!
In most cases there is no tax on the healthier alternatives so how do you reduce it?
I live in Switzerland. Confectionary and processed foods like frozen chips are really expensive in comparison to fresh food. It’s the opposite in Ireland. It’s around 10 euro for a bag of frozen chips in comparison to 3 euro for bag of potatoes.
Tax breaks. Reward companies for producing healthier and cheaper food. Finance itwith the savings made in the health budget. Granted that would be a long term strategy as opposed to the usual quick fix tax.
@Clairbear, plastic ham. choclate and wine from denner are the cheapest things in Switzerland, buying proper food in coop or migros would bankrupt you
Thre price goes up and the weight of products go down.
Or how about higher higher health insurance premiums / hospital charges for those who are obese. That’s when people will start to take personal responsibility for one of the key factors in a person’s health. It’s not sugar thats the problem it’s the amounts of sugar that people are consuming.
What sugar do you tax? Glucose? Fructose? Corn syrup? All sugars. Simply tweak the compound and you have a tax free sweetener. Attitudes need to change. Our tax system should change also, but not because of sugar.
Unfortunately this is how our Government works. Instead of coming up with actual solutions they just tax away the problem. Too fat? Tax sugar. Too drunk? Minimum price alcohol.
Short sighted and unfair on those of us who look after our health.
The purpose of taxation is revenue generation. Pure and simple. Any attempt to use it as a method to influence behaviour is lazy in the extreme.
We have enough taxes!
Nanny state telling me what’s good for me. I’m an adult I make my own decisions and live with the consequences. I’m sick of this creeping fascism.
Drop the Low Fat mantra of SafeFood Ireland. IT’S NOT BLOODY WORKING.
But society also has to live with the consequences in the form of much higher spending required by the health service to deal with obesity related illness. There is no excuse for being overweight.
A sugar tax is an excellent use of taxation to give an appropriate economic signal to consumers.
If you don’t OD on sugary items (eg fizzy pop) you will not be paying any noticeable extra for food. In fact, in time, you will be better off if the tax has the desired health improvements and associated savings.
Sugar is highly profitable for big food companies for the simple reason of the fact that human beings are not naturally well equipped to properly regulate a sugar intake in a diet derived mainly from manufactured, less natural food sources.
The lack of authorities’ interest in a sugar tax is yet more evidence that they are more concerned with big company profits than the health and well being of ordinary citizens. Further evidence, if any were needed after their response to the financial/economic/monetary mess, that there is no meaningful democracy – representation of the interests of the majority of citizens, vs the interests of the wealthy few.
Except its about controlling peoples behaviour, regardless of the ‘benefits’ it doesn’t respect peoples choice and freedoms
That’s not an argument Mark Hallon. An obesity epidemic is a public health issue. ‘Choice and freedoms’ are not an absolute right in any society, nor could they be. Do you think you should be able to drive your car at any speed of your ‘choice’?
The food supply industry is controlled by a mere handful of huge companies. Junk food would be all that is available to most people absent regulation, simply because it is more profitable.
@Keith we do have taxes sure.. But what about all the fat people. The state has to fund looking after them when they get the inevitable health issues.. We should tax people for being over weight. And if you are very obese, then we should be taxing them hard. Why should I have to pay for looking after some fat a&s who is too lazy to get off the couch and do some exercises and eat healthy. Its not hard, there are gyms that cost less than 200 a year! and tons of cheap shops around that sell good food.
Until your potential future health issues make you a drain on the public health system.
Applying more tax is only going to make the poor poorer, It’s not going to change their lifestyle.
how about making fruit and veg cheaper than a chocolate bar? That´s why the USA have a big problem.
How does increasing the price of skittles make you poor?
We don’t want you buying them
Donal – every vegetable item i can think of is already cheaper then a bar of chocolate. On a 1 to 1 basis.
Never a truer word said Donal, I was in a supermarket the other day and a 4 pack of chocolate bars was €1 and a 4 pack of oranges was €2.50.
I agree with a sugar tax, no it won’t change the situation overnight, we also need education. I would like to see a healthcare levy on all junk food, alcohol and tobacco. If people see the revenue raised spent on healthcare, most would support it.
forget about the sugar tax, why should I pay extra because some people sit on their ass stuffing their face, mandatory exercise will sort them
Why is it when there’s a problem the answer to it is always tax it !!
Exactly… Tax sugar, decrease tax on healthy food.
Food is not taxed, so the option to decrease is not available. The revenue from a sugar could, and should, be rebated via other taxes. Eg removing VAT on womens menstrual health products would be one option.
Another tax is just what we all need!
Only in Ireland would the majority of people vote in favour of paying a new additional tax. Incredible.
To be sure to be sure
The poll has no doubt being skewed by bots, the % does not match anywhere near comment upvotes. This topic has been given a strangely large online promotion of late, why who knows
A doctor may be qualified to discuss health issue but they have zero business getting involved in discussing civil liberties and the arrogance to lecture is disgusting
We educate in nutrition using the food pyramid. It’s been completely disproven. The biggest myth is everything in moderation our bodies are setup in certain ways and there are different types of bodies that need different balances of macros. We also need more exercise and surely schools are best set to provide this. PE has been recently changed to educate more on health related activity but with less activity included. Seems counter productive.
You’re over-thinking it James. Healthy lifestyle, healthy diet. Simple.
What is healthy Anthony? Is natural butter healthy? Or man made muck like LowLow?
I trust cows more than chemists
Taxing sweets won’t work. Fags and Booze (in pubs) are all ready taxed to the hilt and people still puff and guzzle away,regardless of price.
Ergo its not our health they are concerned about but more their pockets!!
Or here’s one for the revenue. Quantity sugar tax. Packet of fizzy cola bottles. Eat the first 3 free. Between 4 – 10 is tax band A add 3%. 11 – 15 tax band B add 5%. Eat 16 plus add10% for each additional cola bottle.
Lets make food more expensive! Who the fu## comes up with these stupid ideas. Have our leaders just defaulted to the idea that if a problem is complex to fix they just add a tax and hope it gets sorted by magic?
why not make it more expensive.. It doesn’t have to be put on everything. Coke, fanta and other “bad” foods should get an extra 30% added to them. Will it stop people, no but the country might as well benefit from it with more revenue.. If its stops even 5% of people then that is a gain.
Was this not tried and then abandoned in Denmark for being totally ineffective?
Read this http://health.spectator.co.uk/a-tax-on-sugar-wont-work-as-the-shipwreck-of-the-danish-fat-tax-shows/
The last sentence sums the argument against a fat tax up extremely well
‘No country has ever reduced obesity through taxation and the scale of taxation that would be required to make even a dent on obesity rates would be so vast that any government that attempted it would not be in government for very long.’
The ‘spectator’ ? It’s a corporate propaganda rag.
The burger king ad in the article , double facepalm
I blame the parents!!!
More tax eh?. If people want to be fat slobs stuffing their faces hourly with sugary shite,that’s their fckin problem.
nope. it’s our problem in a few short years when they’re in hospital with any amount of related illnesses and conditions.
Just let them die,tough shit. It will free up the health system too for people who deserve it. It’s a win win.
So you have no solutions then.
Tax as an answer to obesity is pure pie in the sky. Education, healthy lifestyles, schools that replace daily religion classes with interesting and suitable physical exercise are only some of the more effective options. Taxing under the guise of health promotion is lazy lazy lazy thinking.
Sure everything else is taxed, may as well add some more to the list.
I don’t think a tax in isolation will help
There is a huge issue in this country with lack of education in the schools, lack of proper exercise in the schools and lack of training for Home Ec and PE teachers
I’ve no issue with a sugar tax, it can only be a good thing for society but if you think this will make people eat healthier is deluded. You only have to go into any Lidl or Aldi and you can pick up fruit and veg for cents, not euros, cents..but yet some people still buy their kids frozen crap at 3 or 4 times the price of veg because they ‘haven’t got the time’. It’s all about education
Tax is not the answer. Every day at lunch time I see kids heading into our local shop and emerging with rolls full of sausages, boxes of wedges and cans of coke. Also coming out of the chipper with bags of chips etc. When I went to school I was given a packed lunch and some fruit. Maybe if parents sent their kids out with a nutritious lunch instead of throwing a few euros at them to buy crap that would be a start. Eating habits start at home. Another tax is not the answer. This nanny state rubbish needs to stop. People are responsible for their own decisions. It hasn’t worked for booze or cigarettes so it won’t work on sugar. Only education and more exercise will help but even then there will always be those who just don’t care. Penalising healthy people who enjoy sweet things on moderation is not the answer. Plus it’s not just the sugar it’s the sedentary lifestyle. Kids sit on front of game consoles instead of being out running around and being active and so on. How we live and not just how we eat is also contributing to our obesity problems.
I’ve never done the low fat spread fad or artificial sweetener fad. Full fat milk, butter and fry up once a week. Moderation is the key. Enjoy what you eat, and eat what you enjoy. Trans fats are the satan of food. Artificial sweeteners are pure poison. Taxing isn’t the answer.
“Artificial sweeteners are pure poison.”
Completely untrue https://youtu.be/Mf82FfX-wuU
Unfortunately, we are not well biologically programmed to apply ‘moderation’ – some worse than others. And the food ‘industry’ know that and take advantage of it.
With a sugar tax, if they want to maintain the sales quantity at the same price, they’ll have to reduce the sugar content.
Sugar has zero health benefits, and is proven to do a lot of harm, costly to us collectively. It won’t be banned, you’ll still be able to buy more than enough to achieve severe ill health, but you’ll have to be more direct and deliberate about it.
Along with Al Ca, I also recommend people watch the BBC series ‘The Men Who Made Us Fat’ if you want a real eye-opener on why obesity is rising. There’s a combination of factors at play but the food industry are by far the biggest culprits. In the interests of profit they pour investment into making food addictive and desireable. Get the alluring combination of salt, sugar and fat (taste and ‘mouthfeel’) right and you get an extremely addictive foodstuff that people just can’t get enough of.
Couple this with bombardment of advertising and you’re on to a surefire winner. Look at how much food advertising there is in every ad break on TV. Before this all started there was no such thing as ‘snacking’ between meals. The food industry invented the concept of the ‘snack’. Look at packaging an display – every newsagent with banks of colourfully wrapped confectionary/ crisps etc. right in front of you as you queue to pay with nothing better to do while waiting than stare at these products until you’re subliminally reeled into buying one. Hoardings and brightly lit up fast-food logos on every city street. It’s all around us and the food companies pay millions for it BECAUSE IT WORKS. And then the competitively increasing portion sizes playing to our inner greed and desire for better ‘value for money’. The ‘super-size’ idea is widely regarded in the food industry as a game-changing brainwave though it might seem counter-intuitive at first.
Simple really. We’re all much more easily manipulated than we think. (We’ve seen similar tactics with the tobacco industry)
Also, education is really important (but it isn’t enough without some strong regulation of the food industry with regard to portion-size, ingredients and advertising). Enabling people to live less sedentary lives won’t be truly possible without a change in attitude towards working hours meaning adults and their children spend less time at work/ childcare and have more time for physical exercise and cooking their own meals (not buying ready-made food or eating out). That’s a huge ask and also perhaps not of as much importance as controlling diet. People need to gain a better sense of portion-size. Schools should ban vending machines full stop. Creches and childcare professionals should not serve fruit juices or any food with added sugar and the food they serve must be inspected on a regular basis – parents really face an uphill battle when, behind closed doors and with a view to the bottom line, their childcare providers are filling their kids with crap.I could go on and on, and I have (sorry) but really, it amazes me that people buy into the ‘personal responsibility’ line. People have not got more greedy in the past 30-odd years. The food industry has just become larger and more sophisticated in attracting customers and we’re paying the price with our health.
Niamh….thank you for taking the time to write and post a good summary of the situation.
Thanks for posting up Al and Niamh.
i’ve recently researched data available on the sugar epidemic and it does seem marketing from the fat cats is advertently aimed at children ; the following is some of the bits and pieces I have found that is of particular interest;
marketing of food products we are talking about the five categories: Snacks; Fast foods; Confectionery; Sweetened cereals; Soft drinks – foods and drinks which are mostly placed on the top shelf of the Pyramid, which should be eaten only occasionally. These foods are high in fat, sugar and salt, (HFSS) and are also termed energy dense foods. They may contribute a high proportion of calories to the diet and encourage passive over-consumption.
Television is the main medium of advertising to children. Most ads are for unhealthy foods (HFSS foods). Network 2, children’s programmes – 54% of all ads. A recent study by the National Consumer Council Northern Ireland (2006) showed that there were more ads for foods HFSS during children’s viewing times than during adult viewing times including on Network 2.
The picture is much bigger than just TV advertisement. This was the picture sponsored sports/schools events the Irish Heart Foundation found in 2004 when compiling information for the European report;
McDonald’s Go Active GAA campaign
Cadbury Sec. Schools Basketball Champ’s
Coca-Cola Rugby Tournaments
Irish Sugar Siúcra Primary Schools Sports Day
Nestlé Ire. Irish Schools Athletics Programme
Nestle Kit Kat Parks Tennis League
Lobbyists from the food industry seem reluctant to accept an SSD tax because of concerns that the tax will affect consumption, sales and profits. Therefore there appears to be unanimous agreement between those in favour of an SSD tax on health grounds and the food industry that the tax will reduce consumption.They seek to sell as much of their products as possible and cannot at the same time help consumers to reduce consumption. The industry can undermine people’s ability to resist over-consuming SSDs by spending millions to advertise them, especially to children. Other industry strategies to increase consumption include lowering the price as the size increases and making them widely SSDs available in schools, sports venues and cinemas.
Nice post, thanks!… and er well spotted, from 4 months ago ;)
Taxing suger is just a lazy tax to make it look like something is being done. When really it isn’t. If you want to go down the road if taxing unhealty foods why not stsrt with the ingrediants that cause the harm in the first place. Like artificial sweetners and aspartamean. These are the things that cause the body to store fat and while we’re at it double the price of diet drinks and energy drinks. There is nothing more sickening than seeing a 5 year old sipping on a bottle of lucozade sport.
Increase taxes..why?….reduce taxes on healthy food
Isn’t it about time for another I’m not morbidly obese… I’m ‘curvey’ and for your information I can be beautiful and healthy at any size how dare you or the stores that only cater for waif thin size 18 and below try and fat shame me article….
How is that going to change eating habits? If you tax obese people, then I bet you’d see a real change.
How would you “obese tax” work in practice?
Perhaps we should move to a universal insurance system where people pay higher premiums based on how well they look after their health?
How about a carb tax too while we’re at it!!
How about they encourage the use of gyms or other forms of exercise with tax rebates, like they have done with the cycle to work scheme. The theory seems to be, If a tax is introduced on sugary items it reduces consumption and cost on the health system. But personally a tax probably wouldn’t put me off buying sugary items. Why not encourage exercise, if people are fitter obesity is tackled and cost of healthcare is reduced in this situation. It will cost the government initially but could be looked at as an investment for the future. Also P.E needs to be taken seriously in school, we had an allocated hour and fifteen minuites in school once a week. More P.E in schools at a younger age encourages children into sport and they could develop further interests, playing a sport could become a passion
Forget PE, I did 3 hours of french a week yet can’t speak a word of it.
Parents need to encourage their kids but that of course needs getting off the couch and doing active things with them.
I watched a series of programs recently called “The Men Who Made Us Fat” I think it was a BBC production.
It lays the blame squarely on the shoulders of the food industry. It made me see people who are overweight in a new light and not as people who just like to eat for the sake of eating. Food producers need a kick up the hole.
*Food producers being those who process food for consumption……not farmers.
People could just try eating as much as they need. Afterall no matter how much the oil companies try I don’t see many people continueing to put petrol in the car after the tank is full.
Matty people can eat very little but if it’s junk then it’s a problem. You are oversimplifying the problem
Matty….just checked….you can view that program I mentioned on Youtube……it’s shows how complicated the situation has become and how the industry tries everything in the book to get people to eat…….regardless of whether they need to or not.
Heres some maths
Unstable systems
If Calories in > Calories burnt = increasing stored fat.
If in < Calories burnt = decreasing stored fat.
Stable system
When calories in – calories burnt = 0
Then body fat remains constant.
We humans are genticly programmed to gorge when food is available (like all other animals) but its fashionable to blame others for our own shortcomings. I worked in Africa for years, the place is awash with processed food too but a funny thing only the rich are fat.
The people there who cant afford to eat too much don't have funny meabolisms that make them obese.
I know the food industry only cares about profit and lots of food is unhealthty. But people need take responsiblity for themselves. Just eat less and you will gain less weight or even lose some.heres a tip, the more food resembles the living creature it once was the less unhealty it is (poisonous mushrooms aside)
Yeh cause the tax on smokes worked a treat
This article is over simplistic nonsense. Taxation of items does not reduce consumption. This is a fact we have seen borne out by sales of alcohol and tobacco. Obseity is not as simple as eat healthy and move more no matter what anyone on here says. I ate a far healthier diet than my ex and exercised way more. In fact he did no exercise at all yet he never had an issue with his weight and I had to watch every mouthful. Once someone is already obese it needs to be looked at like any other addiction as often that is what it becomes. There is emerging evidence that this approach is starting to yield good results in the US. The big opportunity though is to prevent people becoming obsessed in the first place . There are no cookery lessons in schools anymore . I did them in primary school. It’s all very well saying eat vegetables but if someone can’t cook them in an appetising way they won’t eat them. Secondly budgeting lessons showing the key financial benefits of cooked food over processed ready meals. Thirdly education on what is healthy . Schools demand healthy lunch boxes fillers and have done for over twenty years . This isn’t enough though to prevent kids becoming obese. Parents need the education on what to eat and how best to cook it. We are bombarded on what is good to eat and what causes cancer. How it’s cooked can cause cancer and even vegetables can be genetically modified and lean meats like chicken are coming from other countries and may be pumped full of drugs to make the meat appear tastier and last longer. It’s information overload and people don’t know what to do for the best. Also the availability of free sports clubs for kids can be a problem. At a local level there if often not an affordable sporting or physical activity available for kids to attend. Even the so called free ones can have hefty equipment costs. Our society has changed too. There is often no stay at home mother with perhaps more time to cook meals from scratch. Working parents are tired at the end of the working day and collecting kids doing honework and catching up on chores often leaves little time for loner meal preparation. Kids aren’t out playing as much either. They are watched and kept close to home as a safer option . We have whole industries based around dieting and low fat products that don’t work. Tell someone to use a low fat option when it’s jam packed full of sugar is a nonsense . There is also evidence that exercise is not the vital component in weight loss . Diet is. Exercise does have other benefits obviously but the emphasis in weight loss should be on diet . There are a myriad of reasons why people are obese but education parents in breaking the cycle is the first step. My daughter just gave her children water as their drink. Today her 11 year old will choose water above any other drink. This is a choice she has made through habit and through building up a taste preference for water since childhood not because it’s the healthier option. We need to work on healthy eat as a norm for children but we need to teach the basics and simplify the choices and then we will make a difference . Taxing sugar us not the answer selling low fat products is not the answer , telling people move more is not the answer nor is telling people eat less. ( someone can eat small amounts but it can all be junk). Why can’t we take a realistic long term approach ? A quick fix like a sugar tax may be a good sound bite and lull people into thinking obesity is being tackled when it’s not . It’s good for the governments purse too. None of it means it will tackle any if the root causes of obesity.
Taxation did reduce cigarette and alcohol consumption. It may be an unpopular view but it certainly did reduce it.
Education reduced it, the warnings/pictures on packs did far more than the price ever did, which given peoples spending power today compared with the 50′s-90′s is virtually the same impact
Nonsense Mark, the warnings on packs, watered down by industry lobbying, did nothing, which is why public health officials are trying to bring in plain packaging to further reduce consumption.
As an ex smoker, the price of cigarettes never had any effect on my consumption. You might moan about it but it makes no difference, Health is why I quit, knowing that smoking is likely to kill you and having it drummed into you makes far more difference.
Tesco sell 2 litres of lemonade for €0.79, tack a 20 tax on and its still less than a Euro. How many people is that going to make cut down on sugar?
How about a tax on flatulence that stuff stinks
Its called self control. Some people just don’t have it.
Not as simple as that unfortunately.
People will always make excuses. Now days vegetables especially are really cheap. It wasn’t long ago that you could get some for less than 10 cents.
A lot of people are just lazy; takes away fast food rather than cook their kids a meal. Taxing isn’t the answer as a lot of this people are what we call ‘vulnerable’. As someone posted on this before I too hate what that word has become; we have criminals with hundreds of convictions described as vulnerable.
First thing to do is change the welfare payment system. Make it so you get a debit card and that can only be used for better food. No high fat high sugar rubbish and especially no cigarettes or alcohol. If you want those things work for them. We the tax payer give these people what amounts to free money we should have a say on hoe it’s spent.
As posters above have said the problem is obesity is a huge drain on our health resources. So make it so everyone with a medical card who expects their medical bills for free does not have the chance to become obese or taken to hospital drunk all the time or die from a smoking related cancer.
Welfare and the health service are by far the biggest economic bills on our society. It’s time to fix them once and for all.
Well said its gluttony and a lack of discipline. But how dare you say that to fat vulnerable people.
There will be no new taxes till after Election. If FG get back in to run things then yeah, sugar tax is a definite along with many other new ones. FG will probably start charging us for paying tax.
Taxing sugar only is the wrong approach! We should be subsidising healthy food products at the same time so as to make them more affordable for low and middle income families! Having lost 30 kg by eating healthier I know a bit on the subject but it increased my food budget by three! There are other measures that can be taken too!
Education , fitness promotion and financial support of healthy foods , substitution or removal of sugar It has to be a multi pronged attack on obesity . Carbon tax does not stop me driving or heating my house.
F.G are waiting till next year to introduce this tax, it has nothing to do with promoting good health and everything to do with raising more revenue.
Again the journal publish a factual piece based on opinion, suposistion and some dodgy polls.
Maybe if the government want to address problems they might want to consider why the problem costs the hse double what it costs the nhs per capita despite it being a bigger problem in the u.k
The Snear. Like the Carbon emission tax. Force people through corporate dominance of set industry I.E the energy industry food industry to buy and consume bad products .. Energy companies kill any clean energy technology recommendations or engineering over the years forcing people to use the polutive technology the same as the food industry enhance bad food production practices GMO and so on saturate the market with sugary food advertise non stop condition people into buying it as a norm and like with the new taxes coming after Global Climate seminar in Paris bring in a wave of new taxes to punish people for using the technology Tha the corporations insist we use a here its a double whammy and the usefull idiots “their words not mine” making the corporations even richer if course small token gestures will be done to improve technology but its a scam . The sugar tax Corporations who lobby government to sell their sugary products now want people to pay tax punishment tax to eat it. Price of organic through the roof people cant afford it. At the same Tim Coveney Minister for Agriculture pushing GMO food into our baskets whilst telling us we need to be healthier. You look at the poll then and realise most people are absolutely clueless and over trustworthy and real quick to sign up to new taxes without ever contemplating its a con job Just more money they give still all out dependence on suits owned by corpos to be the moral guardians of how we live all the while been robbed in the cruelist charade I all all let us help you tis for your own good . Ha they really do have the masses in the palm of their hand ” Toys” Christmas time 365 24/7.
Frys Guinness and spuds, the staple diet of the Irish, no wonder we’re fat
This article is false and misleading – Sugar is not the enemy in obesity it is the actual high levels of fat consumed and inactivity. Dieticians should be advising a low fat high carbohydrate lifestyle not just diet. Meat and dairy are the main culprits with regards to obesity. Stop misleading the public!!!
You are completely wrong . It is sugar and not fat that are the issue . The low fat myth is finally being debunked.
Tax relief on gym memberships and exercise classes – it would benefit everyone.
The biggest surprise about the push for a sugar tax was that our boy Leo was pushing for it.
Hard to imagine that our minister of health was doing something health related.
“it’s time to tax sugar” No it’s time to go for a long walk !… regularly
It’s time for healthier foods to be made cheaper and the addition of proper nutrition to the school curriculum.
They don’t care, its just another tax.
Won’t be long now till these fool’s will be knocking on our doors looking for votes to keep or put them in to their cushy lifestyles. If you can be bothered to engage with them ask the questions. Personally I’m sick of paying all these taxes that do nothing for our quality of life. TV license to pay huge wages for a station I couldn’t be bothered watching. Property tax on somthing I am paying for with no help from government. Water tax that only pays for meters and bonuses. USC that pays for nothing as far as I can see. Road tax that doesn’t fix roads unless it’s an election year. A Bulls@$t tax in Kildare st would raise more revenue than the rest put together.
Fructose taxes,im not paying another one!
Instead of adding another tax on us as sugar is in almost everything, why not remove the VAT from healthy products?
Bannanas and apples are already cheaper than mars bars.
Bananas are chock full of natural sugars though. Processed sugars might be the main enemy but natural sugars are not harmless. Fruit juices are a case in point and that’s even without any added sugar .
It’s not just sugar – you have GMO, salt etc.
Try and purchase the organic veg, fruit, meat etc. and see your grocery bill jump hugely. It’s not affordable.
Or I could just buy regular fruit veg and fresh meat, which have no added sugars, stabilisers, salt, preservitives…………….. etc. Of course i wouldn’t be as smug.
Excuses must be cheap because thats all I see here.
Do Irish people think that there is less obesity in the rest of Europe because the governments there are giving out free organic carrots and shooting mars bar munchers on sight?
In the vast majority of cases being obese is a lifestyle choice (spare me the overactive thyroid tales), its just easier here to blame the government for it.
Cén fáth nár cuireadh an cáin ar siúcre? Mar chuir na comhlachtaí móra brú ar Aire Noonan i.e tá siadsan níos tábhachtaí ná sláinte an phobail. Beimid ag sábháil airgead leis an gcáin seo agus d’fhéadfadh cáin eile a ghearradh siar.
Typical ham fisted solution. You can’t tax yourself out of a problem. There are countless examples of it not working. First thing first, stop giving social welfare benefits out in cash. Give them a credit card that will only allow them purchase certain things. No crisps, sweets, chocolate, alocohol or tobacco.
Thats it stephen attack the most vunerable in society the answer to all our problems.
Tax is all FG/LAB know… What about education on the problem from school to advertising.. To many taxes already..
Sugar is good. Sugar is obesity and that means, heart problems, diabetes, cancer l, all revenue generators for DOB, James Reilly and their teams of ex-minister directors after FG, FF, Lab have run the public health services into the ground.
Mmmm finished almost whole pack of Cadbury Roses last night on my own… At this stage cheat day turning into cheat weak Chinese tonight :)
We could.. and I know this sounds kehraaaaaazy.. we could educate our children on how bad sugary drinks are for them. Its waaay out there, I know.
Or just not give them any.
Tax. The one solution to all of Ireland’s problems.
What about personal responsibility?
How do you explain the rise of obesity in recent years if it’s all just down to ‘personal responsibility’? Were people in the 1960s just more disciplined and better able to resist temptation? Do you really believe human nature has undergone a fundamental change in the past few decades or is it just possible there might be significant environmental factors at play? Do you think the food industry does no research to make their products as appealing as possible and just relies on ‘greedy fatsos’ to come along and increase their profits and market share?
In reality having a tax on sugar products will do bugger all if you want a sugary product you’ll get it regardless. Maybe stop encouraging kids to go to McDonald’s and the likes a lunchtimes and weekends etc when I was going to school in the 90s I got 40p and got a couple of packets of Frosties or a quarter of Apple drops. Nowadays there’s a string of kids at every chippy
Always the easiest most profitable way to deal with health issues by this Government. Why not educate!? Create programmes in our schools for out children to learn the affects of sugar and fatty foods. This lazy way of let’s just increase the price is not good enough
Why not just tax the air we breath A tax on sugar will just make people poorer not healthier. Excuses for stealth taxation.
why not just put a high calories warning on bottle drinks that have a lot of sugar
The bottles already tell people how many calories are in it and how much of their daily allowance a serving consumes, people don’t seem to care
Ciaran, people don’t always realise. A 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola, for example, is two “servings”. Know anyone who keeps half for another day?
Each serving contains 27g of sugar, around the RDA for an adult.
Nutritional information available online from Coca-Cola gives it as a percentage RDA for all carbohydrates, which is misleading at best.
To tackle obesity, people need to focus more on getting enough exercise rather than eating healthy. Exercise will make people feel better about themselves and eating healthier will become something that they want to do, instead of something that they have to do.
Diet is 80% of the problem unfortunately.
Pay up and shut up,the government cares about you,yeah right.
They’ll be telling us how to wipe our arse next!
Why tax sugar as the main culprit is theglucose-fructose syrup or corn syrup they put into everything and not sugar. The glucose-fructose syrup has been seen to cause fatty liver disease which can cause Cirrhosis of the liver and it is in nearly everything now.
Another cause is artificial sweeteners which has been shown to make people eat more and people wouldn’t eat as much if there were sugar in things rather than many feel cancer causing sweeteners?
How about increased education in schools/communities around healthy eating and the negative affects of a bad diet!? Tax is just a lazy way of appearing to do something, never mind how ineffective it is!
How about free gym membership for everyone or tax incentives for obese people to lose weight . Putting a tax on it will do nothing for the health & well being in Ireland . Only more revenue for the government to give away to bond holders
Food intake is a far more important factor in weight loss than exercise, also many people would find effectively paying obese people to lose weight even more unpalatable than a sugar tax
Jesus another excuse to rob more money from the people’s purse ,’tax this tax that ,Jesus soon they will tax the bloody” air ” yea breath ‘ ,
Something that gets surprisingly little discussion in the obesity debate is our cultural eating habits as a nation. The binge drinking (beer is fattening, hangovers reduce activity the following day), the buttered/fried potatoes/chips served daily and the massive meal portions we consider standard in this country compared to everywhere else.
Does anyone actually believe fizzy drinks and chocolate bars are the problem?
If Ireland were to take the initiative in taxing sugary drinks, what would be the chances that Coca Cola and PepsiCo would remain in Ireland?
More bollocks!
Another tax people should just be free to do what they want without inccuring taxes just like we were freed in 1916 an entered a democracy and nearly 100 years on we are still shackled by austerity misery and uncertainty its time for change let some one else lead the lines just like we done all those years ago and let us be freemen of ireland again this country has a problem there only solution is to tax it and instead of putting that tax back into the country its going to euro crats we should leave europe and be a nation once again we mught have got away from english rule in 1916 but now we are under European rule state if this nation.
Give it a rest james, jesus I bet people love to see you walk in to a bar. “Ahhhh good eveninng james”, “is it? bah”
We already pay FAR to much tax.
So the sugar tax should be returned to us by other means, eg of VAT or income taxes.
The idea of taxing ‘bads’ is not new. In most cases it results in an overall better outcome for us.
Nobody ever mentions the glut of Sugar Daddies that existed during the boom. Sunday Indo magazine much thinner.
Just have a fat tax instead using BMI
I agree on the fat tax, but BMI is a stupid scale to use.. its not accurate, most rubgy players or anyone that “lifts” will have a lot of muscle and will be considered obese/overweight on that scale. premise is good just a different method is needed. But each person could be ordered to go to the doctor and be tested(by whatever mechanism – the old pinch an inch maybe ;)) and then the doctor reports the results. Then the revenue can deduct money as required(overly simplified here) it should be a high tax as well to encourage people to improve their lifestyles and get off the tax..
€239 per capita is over a billion €- per annum I assume. This isnt credible .
A more effective way of encouraging healthy eating would b to decrease tax on fruit and vegetables. The prices are outrageous comparing t other european countries.
We can be the fattest best little country in the world-Enda will be pleased
Yes.
No dats bull. I drink coke n red bull all d tym. Still a size 10
You’re a statistical outlier Caroline, we’re all different.
People have to take responsibility for themselves.if you feel your getting heavy because of sugary products maybe you’ll have the common sense to cut down or dare I say it exercise.
Why don’t we ban all the artificial enhancers such as MSG, high fructose corn syrup is connected very strongly with obesity. A big focus on healthy foods and a new incentives to buy healthy food. The whole issue here is all to do with revenue its nothing to do with health initiatives.
have your say