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California lawmakers on Thursday advanced the last major surviving bill in a package aimed at reducing consumption of sodas, approving a measure that would require health warning labels on sugary drinks.
The measure by Sen. Bill Monning (D-Carmel) received a bare majority of votes even though some Democrats withheld votes while others in the majority party joined Republicans in opposition.
The latest action follows this year’s shelving of measures that would have put a tax on soda and banned “Big Gulp”-style sodas in an effort to address health risks including obesity and diabetes that are posed by sugary drinks.
“They represent the single leading source of increased bad calories that are being promoted in our communities and pushed on communities of color,” Monning said during the floor debate, citing a “national epidemic” of diabetes.
The label on container would say: “STATE OF CALIFORNIA SAFETY WARNING: Drinking beverages with added sugar(s) may contribute to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and tooth decay.”
[...] The American Beverage Assn. opposed the bill with a strong push by lobbyists and while making major political contributions to state lawmakers.
The industry argued that the bill and its health impact claims went too far.
“There are already more effective ways to help people manage their overall sugar consumption rather than through mandatory and misleading messages,” said Steven Maviglio, a spokesman for the American Beverage Assn.
[...] Legislators are also still considering a bill that would bar the soda industry from offering subsidies including discount coupons that encourage soda consumption.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 29 2019, @03:36PM (9 children)
Can't take care of themselves, can they?
Better mind the Russians [newyorker.com]...
*sheesh!* Fucking racist bullshit!
(Score: 5, Informative) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday May 29 2019, @04:17PM (8 children)
I'd say "people of Walmart" need labels. Obesity due to poor diet cuts across the racial spectrum.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 4, Interesting) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday May 29 2019, @05:06PM (1 child)
Racially, it's fairly evenly distributed. [kff.org]
If we're looking for correlations, living in a Red state has a much stronger relationship.
State Obesity Rates [menshealth.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday May 29 2019, @06:56PM
Yeah, well, the racist bullshit is right there in the summary:
And I'm being hammered for pointing it out. The moderators are becoming real assholes... or maybe it's the "Russiagaters" lashing out at the mockery. We all know how sensitive they are over their big loss. Who knows, who cares? It discredits the system.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by digitalaudiorock on Wednesday May 29 2019, @06:12PM (5 children)
The number of calories people end up drinking (especially from soda) really is mind boggling. Given that a 12 oz coke has the equivalent of almost 10 teaspoons of sugar, and I see people in line at the super market buying the shit like some staple part of their diet in containers about 2-1/2 feet tall...for the love of God anyway...and all that on top of diets that are otherwise horrific as well. It's actually stunning that obesity isn't far worse than it is. I generally drink none of my calories, drinking nothing but my own tap water (well water) and black coffee except on rare occasions.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday May 29 2019, @07:50PM
I'm similar, only ever drinking water and tea, usually straight but sometimes with some stevia or a dash of heavy cream in it. It's amazing how satisfying one teaspoon of that in a big cup of tea is.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Wednesday May 29 2019, @10:04PM (2 children)
I look back to when I was a kid and we were allowed 1 bottle of Pop Shoppe pop per 2-3 days; now people drink it by the dumpster-full.
People need to get a grip and drink more water.
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 30 2019, @02:38AM
Water? what, like from the toilet?
(Score: 3, Insightful) by digitalaudiorock on Friday May 31 2019, @09:01PM
Same here. We rarely had any Coke around and when we did it was those little 8 oz. glass bottles that were about all there was at the time. Basically it was treated like the liquid candy it is.
(Score: 2) by edIII on Wednesday May 29 2019, @10:08PM
That's what pisses me off about this. Not *every* drink is loaded with sugar. There's talk about getting rid of the 48oz BigGulp sizes, which is way too fucking much after getting rid of the 64, and the glorious 128. Lipton ice tea, fresh brewed, in a 48oz cup full of ice on a hot summer day? Fuck yes.
Ohhh, and Coke Zero has no sugar in it. Same with diet stuff, except you'll get cancer instead of diabetes.
Are we actually talking about the Real Sugar drinks becoming popular again? I stopped drinking soda for what seems like a few decades now since they switched to HFCS. Which is it that they're complaining about again?
Meanwhile, it gets harder and harder for me to get a large sugar free drink.
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.