I’m sure I’ve written about the idea of taxes on “unhealthy foods” before but I can’t find the article (yes, I know it’s a man thing). No matter. What I’ve read about Hungary’s proposal to introduce a tax on crisps, soft drinks and chocolate bars doesn’t cause me to qualify my fundamental position which is that these types of selective fat taxes do not work.
I do understand the Hungarian Government’s desire to improve the health of the nation. After all, Hungary has a rapidly growing obesity problem such that it is estimated by 2020 some 62 percent of the population will be either overweight or obese. The government’s aim is to use this tax to help fund the nation’s healthcare. I once spend a delightful but rather bizarre weekend in Hungary visiting a number of spas on behalf of a large fitness chain and in between mud treatments and salt scrubs I attended a number of dinners organised by my attentive hosts. The traditional diet of red meat, pork fat and potatoes followed by sweet, sticky pastries were widely available. If a salad was present it seemed to be smothered in mayonnaise, likewise any vegetables. If the veg were not mayonnaise coated, they were stuffed with minced meat and fat. On a freezing cold morning I recall being taken into a Budapest market by my host and given a shot of brandy and a deep fried cheese ball as a little snack to keep me going from breakfast to lunch. So yes, I can see the rationale for wanting to change the nation’s eating habits.
The plan is to impose a 10 Forint levy on products that contain “too much” salt, sugar or fat, whilst increasing the tax on alcohol and soft drinks by 10%. There are 312 Forints to a British pound. The tax, so I’ve read, is not going to apply to fast food restaurants nor will it cover traditional Hungarian cuisine items such as deep fried goose fat. So there in a nutshell are the two reasons why this tax won’t work. Firstly the tax isn’t high enough even allowing for lower salaries in Hungary and secondly it isn’t widespread enough. For a fat tax to work it would have to take into account all foods.
It does seem a shame that slim people who like to eat some chocolate or drink a sugary soft drink after exercise are going to be penalised for the occasional indulgence. As I can testify, once in a while, on a freezing cold day, a deep fried cheese ball is rather delicious.
Dr David Ashton
9th August 2011
