WASHINGTON, D.C. - The American Beverage Association today responded to a report calling for new taxes on soft drinks and other foods as a means of reducing obesity in our nation.  Singling out individual food and beverage products, such as soft drinks and pizza, for a punitive 18 percent tax increase, as suggested by the report's authors, would not only be discriminatory but ineffective in achieving the noted public health goal. 

NEW YORK - America's leading beverage companies have delivered on a three-year commitment with the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, a joint initiative of the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, to remove full-calorie soft drinks from schools across the country and replace them with lower-calorie, smaller-portion beverages. As a result of the landmark agreement there has been an 88 percent reduction in calories from beverages shipped to schools since 2004.

In response to an abstract presented today at the American Heart Association's 50th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease, Epidemiology and Prevention, Dr. Maureen Storey, senior vice president for science policy for the American Beverage Association, said:

Mayor Nutter is seeking to solve the city's spending problems by further burdening hard-working Philadelphians with new taxes on their groceries, including juice drinks and soda.

Answering First Lady Michelle Obama's call for innovative industry initiatives that contribute to her healthy families program, America's non-alcoholic beverage companies are coming together to make the calories in their products even more clear and consumer-friendly by putting the information on the front of all their packages, vending machines and fountain machines.

"Pancreatic cancer is a serious condition known to have many risk factors that have been identified by leading scientific bodies.  These include age, smoking, race, being male, family history and a diagnosis of diabetes or chronic pancreatitis, as identified by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health.  Other studies suggest that exposure to certain chemicals in the workplace, obesity or a diet high in fat increases the risk of pancreatic cancer.  Quite simply, leading scientific bodies from around the globe, including NCI, do not list sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among the risks. 

In response to a hearing being held by the New York State Senate Standing Committee on Health today, the American Beverage Association issued a statement.

Governor Paterson is once again seeking to solve the state's spending problems by further burdening hard-working New Yorkers with new taxes on their groceries, including juice drinks and soft drinks. What's particularly disconcerting about this proposal is that the tax on a 12-pack of non-alcoholic beverages, like soft drinks, would be more than 9 times higher than the state tax on a 12-pack of alcoholic beverages, like beer.

If the goal is to reduce obesity among New Yorkers, then this public education campaign should be based in fact, not simply sensationalized video that inaccurately portrays our industry's products - products that are fat-free.

The American Beverage Association (ABA) released today a report showing that nearly three in four Americans have access to curbside recycling programs - but the infrastructure is in place for millions more to gain access to this convenient and efficient form of recycling.

In response to a paper issued today by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the American Beverage Association (ABA) issued the following statement:

In response to "Bubbling Over: Soda Consumption and Its Link to Obesity in California," a health policy research brief issued by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, Dr. Maureen L. Storey, senior vice president of science policy for the American Beverage Association, said:

In response to "The Public Health and Economic Benefits of Taxing Sugar-Sweetened Beverages," a Health Policy Report published today in the New England Journal of Medicine, Susan Neely, president and CEO for the American Beverage Association (ABA), issued the following statement:

"We agree that obesity is a serious public health issue, but the solution put forth by these researchers simply won't work. Reducing obesity will only be addressed through comprehensive solutions.

The messages being spread about beverages by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene are so over the top that they are counterproductive to serious efforts to address a complex issue such as obesity.  Like most foods, soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages are a source of calories. Simply naming one food source as a unique contributor minimizes a disease as complex as obesity.  The key to energy balance and maintaining a healthy weight is counting calories in and calories out, not focusing on specific foods or abstaining from any one food or beverage in particular.

In response to "Dietary Sugars Intake and Cardiovascular Health: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association," published in the journal Circulation, Dr. Maureen Storey, senior vice president of science policy for the American Beverage Association, said:

"Like many foods, soft drinks and other sugar-sweetened beverages are a source of calories, but in and of themselves, they are not a unique risk factor for obesity or other negative health outcomes - including heart disease.