(or another over-caffeinated soapbox rant)
Taxing junk food? If I thought the government had a clue what constituted “junk,” maybe I’d view this more favorably. But my gut says no.
“Bad food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables” Mr. Bittman, we subsidize the hell out of corn; what good has that done? I don’t think controlling diet via junk food taxes is the right way to healthify America, but if I had to choose I’d say shift subsidies away from corn and soybean, and toward things like organic spinach and grass fed beef. This would impact a lot of foods containing ingredients that are [IMO] barely suitable for human consumption like high fructose corn syrup and trans fats (and corn & soybean oils).
Denmark and Romania taxing saturated fat? Really? we already went through this when we traded saturated fat-rich butter for diabesogenic trans fat-rich margarine- (“saturated fat”). A tax on saturated fat is non-specific; it hits many healthy foods and not enough junk food. And it is, by definition, a tax NOT on the deceptively unsaturated trans fats. Alternatively, subsidizing corn and soybeans is just making soda and junk food cheaper.
do NOT eat at KFC in Hungary, Peru, or Poland. or anywhere. that’s microwave popcorn levels of trans fat.
Better nutrition education and evidence-based recommendations are far better solutions, IMHO, but we aren’t a country of philosopher’s. I’ve touched a bench on which the sign “wet paint” was taped, and I probably also touched a red hot stove despite my mother’s warning against it. oh well.
