On June 9th, San Francisco supervisors voted unanimously to approve health warnings on advertisements for sugar-sweetened beverages. In the ordinance, sugar-sweetened beverages are defined as drinks with more than 25 calories from sweeteners per 12 ounces. This includes products such as sports and energy drinks, vitamin waters and iced teas that exceed the 25 calorie limit. Milk and some natural fruit and vegetable juice beverages are excluded.
The labels would read, “Warning: Drinking beverages with added sugar(s) contributes to obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay. This is a message from the City and County of San Francisco.” The health warnings would be required on print advertising (billboards, walls, taxis and buses) within city limits, but would not apply to ads in newspapers, on broadcast outlets, or on the Internet. The warning labels would take up at least 20 percent of the ad space. If approved by the Board of Supervisors and the mayor, San Francisco would be the first place in the United States to require such a warning on ads for sugar-sweetened beverages.
Although the warning labels would appear only on advertisements for sugar-sweetened beverages, a separate measure at the state level would require such warning labels on the products themselves.
REFERENCE:
O’Connor, A. (2015, June 10). Warning: Soda May Be Bad for Your Health, San Francisco Says. New York Times. Retrieved June 16, 2015, from http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/06/10/warning-soda-may-be-bad-for-your-health-san-francisco-says/
