Chicago was recently forced to scrap their sugary-drinks tax after city politicians were flooded with complaints from outraged consumers. Every other jurisdiction where soft-drinks taxes have been tried has seen essentially zero effect on obesity. Canada does not have to jump on this bandwagon.

Managing obesity does cost money, but the onus is on those proposing the tax to show that its minor-to-nonexistent benefits justify a $1.7bn/year cost to consumers.