Topic: fat tax

Denmark’s Fat Tax Hurt Business More Than Obesity Rates, So It’s Getting The Boot

Denmark's Fat Tax Hurt Business More Than Obesity Rates, So It's Getting The Boot

In October 2011, Denmark introduced a fat tax to tackle obesity, which seemed pretty progressive for a country with an obesity rate that, while serious, is still much lower than our own (13% in Denmark vs. 35% in the U.S.). But a year later, they’re canning the tax altogether; it turns out it mostly just resulted in a lot of Danish people smuggling butter in from countries that sold it cheaper. More »

Obesity Costs U.S. $190 Billion Per Year—Let The ‘Fat Tax’ Battles Begin

Obesity Costs U.S. $190 Billion Per Year—Let The 'Fat Tax' Battles Begin

There’s no question that American obesity rates are soaring—and it definitely comes at a cost to our health and well being—but new stats from the Campaign to End Obesity peg its annual drain on the U.S. economy at $190 billion. Considering that the goal of anti-obesity campaigners is to shock policy makers into action, you could argue the exact numbers (one of the costs considered was money spent in hospitals swapping out wall-mounted toilets om for floor models to better support obese patients). But however you cut it, it’s hard not wonder if pricing out the cost of obesity will just become another excuse for fat-shaming and discrimination. More »