HCW Benefits Blog

Contributor:
Twyla Hutchins, RN, BSN, COHN-S
Medical Management Officer
Hill, Chesson & Woody

On July 23, The New York Times opinion writer, Mark Bittman, argued that taxes, on things like sodas and unhealthy, over-processed snack foods, would “reduce consumption of unhealthful foods and generate billions of dollars annually. That money could be used to subsidize the purchase of staple foods like seasonal greens, vegetables, whole grains, dried legumes and fruit.” How would that theory impact North Carolinians? Over 422,000 children in our state are food insecure (defined as being unable to consistently access adequate amounts of nutritious food that is necessary for a healthy life.) That puts us at 2nd in the nation, just under Louisiana.

This statistic is startling due to North Carolina ranking in the top ten states for producing farm commodities, livestock, and crops such as cucumbers, strawberries, blueberries, bell peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, watermelon, cabbage, apples, snap peas, and grapes! Yet our children are not getting nutritious foods, partly due to the rising cost of produce and healthy foods, and the lowered cost of sodas, chips, and candy. Price seems to be the differentiator here and it reflects poorly on our health.

Bittman states that the average American consumes 44.7 gallons of soda in one year, and even higher in the South. Couple that with cheap and quick fast food meals – a perfectly imperfect combo… “Would you like to super-size that?”

In Durham, where I live, we have a bustling Farmers Market and a wealth of local foodies promoting food trucks and restaurants that support local farms. Could the answer to this problem be right in our backyard?

Dirty Durham blog writer, Sean Sondej, has a unique idea on how to accomplish less spending on unhealthy foods and more spending on locally-sourced items in The Case for Taxing Bad Foods in Durham. Do you think we could pull it off?