Monday, February 20, 2017

Philadelphians Sour On Tax Of Sweetened Drinks

                It has only been six weeks since the City of Brotherly Love imposed a tax on sweetened beverages, yet a toll has already been taken. Drink distributors and grocers have reported significant drops in sales, some as much as 50 percent. Local distributor Canada Dry Delaware Valley (Canada Dry Ginger Ale, Sunkist, A&W Root Beer, and Arizona Iced Tea) states that their business was off 45 percent in the first five weeks of 2017 as compared to the same period last year. ShopRite and Fresh Grocer supermarkets experienced a 15 percent drop in sales in that time frame.
                For those of you who didn’t read my post on the city’s action (“Philadelphia Imposes Tax On Soda”- 1/31/2017), here is the final full paragraph:
                “Of course, the end result of this tax will be that the city’s rascally and intransigent consumers will go elsewhere to shop. And, when they are shopping in nearby towns unaffected by this tax, they won’t just buy soda. The city of Philadelphia may see sales declines in areas other than soft drinks. And that may be a bitter pill to swallow.”
                Just sayin’.

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