SODA BAN HEARING

Yesterday, at 60 Centre Street, the NYC Dept of Health was challenged by many parties in court over the proposed soda (sugary beverage) ban. One of the issues I thought interesting was if an establishment puts sugar in a beverage like Dunkin Donuts then they must comply w the ban, but if they are like Starbucks and allow the consumer to sweeten their own drinks, then they do not have to comply.

 Also you can still buy a giant drink at CVS, but not your local pizza shop. This all came up b/c the Dept of Health does not regulate CVS drug stores but they regulate the pizza shop.  The arguments were interesting but the very short argument by the NAACP lawyer  garnered a lot of  the press.

The image above from the hearing, thought  was  ironic.  While James Brandt, the lawyer  for the American Beverage Corp was speaking,  in the midst, he grabbed a bottle of water an took a sip, then held onto that bottle for a time,  I thought  was a perfect visual to capture.

Steven Molo attorney for the Korean Deli Owners Association stated a Duane Reade can sell a 20-ounce bottle of Dr. Pepper, but a corner café cannot.

“It’s a serious issue affecting small business at a time when they can least afford it. They’ve been kicked around in this economy for some time now and this ban is just imposing an additional burden on them. It’s quite unfair,” he stated to Judge Tingling.  

The bottom line from what I gathered was an issue of jurisdiction, and whether the Health Dept can regulate.

Story link:
soda ban story

The judge's ruling is pending in the case. The ban is to start in March, awaiting the ruling.