New York Soda Ban Approved: NYC Will Say Goodbye To Big Gulps

The New York Soda ban was approved today by the city’s Board of Health.

That means that it will soon be illegal for New Yorks to by venti Frappucinos, big gulp slurpees, or any sugar-sweetened drink in a cup larger than 16-ounces.

The Huffington Post reports that nine members of the Board of Health voted to approve Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s soda ban. One abstained.

New York’s soda ban will cover restaurants, delis, movie theaters, and sports stadiums. The ban does not cover grocery stores, diet sodas, alcohol, or drinks that are mor than 70-percent fruit juice.

The strange law has been met with criticism as people accuse Bloomberg of enforcing a nanny state in New York. Samantha Levine, a Bloomberg spokeswoman, said that people lodged similar complaints when the city implemented a smoking ban.

Levine said:

“We’ve heard these claims of pending apocalypse before when we proposed bold public health initiatives, and they have been proven false… Critics predicted the end of tourism and that businesses would sink when we banned smoking in bars and restaurants, yet we’ve grown tourism to record levels and the restaurant and bar industry continues to grow.”

The ban hasn’t gone into effect yet. According to the NY Times the Soda Ban will begin in about six months. At that time restaurants will risk a $200 fine if they sell a sugary beverage in a cup larger than 16 0z.

What do you think about the New York Soda Ban? Mayor Bloomberg hailed it as the biggest step any city has taken to curb obesity.

Bloomberg said:

NYC’s new sugary drink policy is the single biggest step any gov’t has taken to curb #obesity. It will help save lives: bit.ly/PeN3wi

— Mike Bloomberg (@MikeBloomberg) September 13, 2012

But not everyone is on board…