UBC students make case for “fat tax”
“Fat people are a huge cost to society.”
So goes the opening line of a paper prepared by four UBC students for an economics course.
While stating that they intended to make this politically incorrect pun, authors Aaron Kwok, Patrick Crawford, Matt Morley, and Dennis Wong also pointed out that they are trying to address what they see as a big problem these days: obesity.
According to the authors, people can be influenced to make healthy choices through one policy: a fat tax.
No, this tax isn’t meant to collect levies based on people’s weight or other measurements of obesity.
Much like taxes on alcohol and tobacco, two products that are proven to have adverse effects, a fat tax would cover food items that are considered unhealthy.
“This is not a proposal against fat people,” Kwok told the Straight in a recent phone interview. “This is an incentive for people to think about their choices, and say, ‘If you decide to have a consistent diet of unhealthy food, you have a cost to everyone else—to you, to me, to taxpayers who fund our health care system.’”
In the paper, the four students note that according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, one in four Canadians is now obese. That is double the obesity rate in 1981.
They also wrote that obesity is a $7.1-billion burden on the economy. That includes health and medical costs for conditions related to obesity.
“The first, and very important decision that must be made in the intervention process is determining which aspect of poor quality food is the best factor to attach the tax to, whether it be saturated fats, sugars, calorie counts or other factors of the food,” the students wrote. “The approach and method of implementation of a ‘fat tax’ would be similar regardless of the ingredient we choose to combat, but scope and level of the tax would depend on the ingredient chosen.”
Comments
19 Comments
R U Kiddingme
Nov 23, 2011 at 4:12pm
Bah. People have the right to commit suicide. Ergo, they have the right to be fat.
Hobo
Nov 23, 2011 at 4:44pm
There will be a prohibition on street pizza! People will have to order their poutine through slit doors in back alleyways! On the hundred block of east Hastings, shadowy types will whisper to you, "Ketchup chips... Mr. Big.... McDonald's..." instead of "Rock.... powder.... down..."
RP
Nov 23, 2011 at 5:02pm
Here we go. This instrusive nanny-state idiocy is likely inevitable - I was just hoping it would be after I'm dead. I better double up on the burgers.
Gentleman Jack
Nov 23, 2011 at 5:47pm
How about a tax on meddlesome Humanities Majors?
Economics is not a Science; it is an Art...and apparently not a very enjoyable one at that.
Doctor
Nov 23, 2011 at 7:47pm
The afflluent comprise a far greater burden on society. They burn far more carbon (all those countless gardeners and their leaf-blowers, all those flights to Hawaii and Heli-skiing in the Rockies, all those interior desecrator appointments, and manicure appointments and yoga classes), they waste far more clothing, food and consumer objects, they drink too much and consume too many drugs and , one suspects, they are often corpulent themselves. The affluent make too much noise and take up too much space. I say we need to tax the rich.
izzy
Nov 23, 2011 at 8:06pm
like the intention, but overeating is as much a problem with obesity as the foods themselves. yeah, its harder to become obese from celery sticks, but usually people who eat uncontrollably to such a degree wont mind shelling out more money for those kind of foods, while its simply a burden to the rest of the population. it's just not a real fix for the problem you're focusing on
Corporate Drones Wage Slaves
Nov 23, 2011 at 8:41pm
Tax the corporations make em pay instead of letting them have off shore subsidiaries, bank accounts & shell companies.
You
Nov 23, 2011 at 9:44pm
"wont mind shelling out more money for those kind of foods"
That's the point. It may deter them, but it probably won't. But in the latter case they help pay the taxes to cover the costs of their own health care.
hanta
Nov 23, 2011 at 9:51pm
sounds like a good idea, if you are suicidal and fat as refered to by Kiddingme, have at it, but if you are overwieght and not suicidal this could help guide you to a better and healthier diet. You would still be free to make your choices. "you sleep in the bed you make" and don't complain if its not comfortable.
milkbone
Nov 23, 2011 at 9:56pm
The majority of "fat" people would enjoy life more if they were healthier. Yes there are some who are happy whatever their weight, some who are actually quite healthy in larger bodies, and some who have medical issues.
The best answer to the obesity crisis is creating better resources for citizens to live healthier lives. The government would save a lot of money in the long run by promoting healthy lifestyles. It is also key that we be giving children the tools in school which will allow them to live happy and healthy lives.
Some things the government could promote/subsidize/create include healthy cooking/eating, forms of exercise, consultation with medical professionals, and creating community discussion around the issue.