Majority of New Yorkers Oppose City's Proposed Soda Ban

Michael M. Grynbaum and Majorie Connelly, of The New York Times, report on the Times poll results, which show sixty-percent of New Yorkers oppose the proposed sugary drink ban, which seems likely to pass a Board of Health vote in three weeks. "A majority in every borough was opposed; Bronx and Queens residents were more likely than Manhattanites to say the plan was a bad idea."

Opposition to the plan centered on a perceived overreach in limiting personal choice - "the exact same points used in an aggressive marketing campaign led by the national soft-drink industry in an effort to beat back the proposal."

Of interest, "The poll found that the mayor's plan, which does not affect diet sodas, is likely to have a disproportionate impact on black and Hispanic New Yorkers, more of whom said they usually consumed regular, full-sugared sodas than whites."

Grynbaum and Connelly note that, "Higher consumption of regular soda tracks closely with city statistics on obesity, which show that blacks, Hispanics and Bronx residents are more likely to be obese or overweight than whites and Manhattan residents."