Vegetarian Star

Mark Bittman is using his New York Times column to explore the possibility of taxing unhealthy food.

Bittman feels this is a way to get Americans to change their eating habits and hold companies accountable for producing products that contain harmful ingredients.

“Simply put: taxes would reduce consumption of unhealthful foods and generate billions of dollars annually,” Bittman writes in an article titled, “Bad Food? Tax It, and Subsidize Vegetables.”

“That money could be used to subsidize the purchase of staple foods like seasonal greens, vegetables, whole grains, dried legumes and fruit.”

“This program would, of course, upset the processed food industry. Oh well. It would also bug those who might resent paying more for soda and chips and argue that their right to eat whatever they wanted was being breached.”

Bittman continues to promote the idea that government control of the cookie jar is only beneficial, as money generated from taxes could help the neediest afford better quality food.

It’s no secret America’s diet needs to be revamped. But is punishing the businesses that satisfy our cravings for everything sweet, salty and high-fat the best way to do it? Not even the strictest vegan wants to live in a world where the only potato chip is a baked sweet one and instead of punishing for bad behavior, why not reward for good?

Several years ago PETA proposed the idea of giving vegetarians a tax cut. The same group is also in favor of insurance companies giving vegetarians lower rates because they are less likely to suffer from chronic and long-term diseases. The demand for healthier food will force food companies to remove the high-fructose corn syrup from their beverages and replace beef and chicken stir-fries with tofu.

Good food. Reward it and everyone and wins.

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