“Unhealthy foods should be taxed the same way tobacco is as part of an effort to battle childhood obesity, Ontario doctors say.” The OMA (Ontario Medical Association) suggests that we should increase taxes on junk food, similar to the taxes we put on tobacco, cigarettes and alcohol. With increased taxes on junk food we should in turn decrease taxes on healthy foods. Doctors are wanting a junk food tax because junk food poses various health threats to Canadians. A junk food tax was introduced to Hungary in 2011. A study was done to show the effectiveness of the tax in Hungary and the results indicated a moderate improvement in population diet that would be attributable to the tax. Ontario's doctors should have Canadians asking: What are the benefits of a junk food tax and how effective would they be? In this essay, I will argue the need for a junk food tax in Canada and why Canadians would benefit from it.
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Which foods do you choose to tax and which foods are left un-taxed? Obvious junk foods would be taxed such as candy, chips, and sugary drinks. However, there are many other saturated or trans fats that are not good for you and the application of these fats may cause controversy. Dairy products would fall under the category of saturated fats but potato chips may also fall under this category. During the application process you may run the risk of taxing a food that isn’t necessarily considered junk food but contains some of the same ingredients in them. However, in his book, Encyclopedia of Junk Food and Fast Food, Andre F. Smith defined junk food as "those commercial products, including candy, bakery goods, ice cream, salty snacks, and soft drinks, which have little or no nutritional value but do have plenty of calories, salt, and fats. To avoid controversy in the application process, we would simply start by taxing the obvious junk foods that Smith defined in his
Which foods do you choose to tax and which foods are left un-taxed? Obvious junk foods would be taxed such as candy, chips, and sugary drinks. However, there are many other saturated or trans fats that are not good for you and the application of these fats may cause controversy. Dairy products would fall under the category of saturated fats but potato chips may also fall under this category. During the application process you may run the risk of taxing a food that isn’t necessarily considered junk food but contains some of the same ingredients in them. However, in his book, Encyclopedia of Junk Food and Fast Food, Andre F. Smith defined junk food as "those commercial products, including candy, bakery goods, ice cream, salty snacks, and soft drinks, which have little or no nutritional value but do have plenty of calories, salt, and fats. To avoid controversy in the application process, we would simply start by taxing the obvious junk foods that Smith defined in his