Nanny State: NYC's Bloomberg to Ban Oversized Sodas

New York City's Mayor Michael Bloomberg is enacting one of the most far-reaching bans on sodas and other sugary drinks at restaurants, movie theaters, and street carts as part of the administration's battle against obesity.

According to The New York Times, the proposed ban would affect almost all of the sugary drinks found on the menus of delis, fast-food eatieries and entertainment venues.

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It would cover a wide range of products, from energy drinks to pre-sweetened iced teas. The sale of any cup or bottle of sweetened drink larger than 16 fluid ounces — about the size of a medium coffee, and smaller than a common soda bottle — would be prohibited under the first-in-the-nation plan, which could take effect as soon as next March, according to the Times.

The ban would not extend to diet drinks, dairy-based products like smoothies or shakes, or alcohol and would not extend to groceries or convenience stores.

“Obesity is a nationwide problem, and all over the United States, public health officials are wringing their hands saying, ‘Oh, this is terrible,’ ”Bloomberg said in an interview on Wednesday in the Governor’s Room at City Hall.

“New York City is not about wringing your hands; it’s about doing something,” he said. “I think that’s what the public wants the mayor to do.”

Already there is a backlash. A spokesman for the New York City Beverage Association, an arm of the soda industry’s national trade group, saying the city is unfairly singling out sodas. The industry has purcased subway ads criticizing the ban.

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“The New York City health department’s unhealthy obsession with attacking soft drinks is again pushing them over the top,” the industry spokesman, Stefan Friedman, said. “It’s time for serious health professionals to move on and seek solutions that are going to actually curb obesity. These zealous proposals just distract from the hard work that needs to be done on this front.”

The plan still faces approval by the city's Board of Health, and the city's health commissioner. That approval is likely, the Times reports, since Bloomberg appointed all.