“Soda Tax” Isn’t Just On Soda

Mayor Jim Kenney signed the historic “soda tax” into law late last week, making Philadelphia only the second city in the nation to implement such a levy – the other is Berkley, California. The tax of 1.5 cents-per-ounce on sugary beverages was first proposed as a means of raising funds for universal pre-kindergarten education in Philadelphia, along with a host of other community-minded projects, but it has been latched upon by public health proponents as a measure that could help combat the rising rates of American obesity, along with related comorbidities like Type 2 diabetes.

Sparkling Ice, a beverage line that advertises zero calories and zero sugar, will be impacted by the soda tax, along with countless other drinks. Is this a positive or a negative?

The law is getting all sorts of national attention. The first clue that this wasn’t going to stay just within the headlines of Philly papers should have come when Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders each weighed in on the measure during their pre-primary visits to the City of Brotherly Love. During the time of the City Council vote and, now, the law’s ratification, the Philadelphia soda tax has blown up news feeds from coast to coast.

One of those national stages covering the soda tax is Forbes.com, which ran an opinion piece on the soda tax yesterday. The main takeaway from the piece was that the “soda” tax won’t be limited to just soda – not by a long shot. According to the letter of the law, “examples of sugar-sweetened beverages include, but are not limited to, soda; non-100%-fruit drinks; sports drinks; flavored water; energy drinks; presweetened coffee or tea; and non-alcoholic beverages intended to be mixed into an alcoholic drink.” In the words of one beverage-company owner quoted in the post: just about everything in the beverage aisle will be taxed.

The soda tax will create the most strain on small, independent beverage distributors, says Forbes, including those who are trying to come up with “healthier” alternatives to soda. The example given in the post was Sparkling Ice, a range of drinks that includes lemonades, teas, and flavored waters. Kevin Klock, CEO of Talking Rain Beverage Company, which makes Sparkling Ice, estimates that the cost per bottle will have to go up by 25 cents in Philadelphia. A 12-pack will cost $3 more. Bigger soda companies like Coke and Pepsi may be able to absorb the tax and not pass it on to consumers, but smaller companies won’t have that luxury. The end result, Klock warned, may be that healthier soda-alternatives may no longer be available in Philadelphia before long.