4/11/2006 http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/news/ng.asp?n=66981&m=2flg411&c=qdrhrvoeraoqydo&idP=18 The majority of American consumers would support a ‘fat tax,’ ora tax placed on unhealthy processed foods, if the revenues were usedto make healthier food less expensive, according to a new survey. The survey, conducted by ‘healthy lifestyle' firm eDiets.com,revealed that 75 percent of participants would support the taxdesigned to discourage consumers from purchasing high-fat,low-nutrition foods. The controversial ‘fat tax' first gained attention over 10 yearsago, when it was recommended as a means to help combat widespreadobesity. The idea behind the tax was that it would be imposed oncertain ‘unhealthy' foods, and be used to subsidize sales of‘healthy' foods, in order to make it cheaper to stick to a healthydiet. According to the new survey, although 57 percent of respondents saidthey consume junk food at least once a week, 38 percent said that atax imposed on these foods would not affect their purchasing habits. The survey revealed that 27 percent of respondents cited fast food asthe “worst offending†junk food. But for those who would slash the junk if made to pay more, theproducts they were most likely to give up were soda and potato chips,followed by candy bars, hamburgers and ice cream. There has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United Statesover the past 20 years - more than 64 percent of US adults arecurrently either overweight or obese, according to the NationalHealth and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). And children's obesity has also gained significant attention in thehealth care and child welfare arenas over the past five years. In2002, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) cited that 16 percent ofchildren aged 6-11 were overweight, with the same percentage holdingtrue for 12-19 year olds. Worldwide over 22 million children under five are severelyoverweight. Experts say junk food and low exercise levels, combinedwith the popularity of computer games and television, are behind thegrowing obesity rates. But although some US cities already have special taxes on preparedfoods, the implementation of a ‘fat tax' remains a highly disputedmatter, with campaigners claiming that the extra revenue is oftenused to cover budget deficits. Last year, Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's plans to place a tax onfast food were accused of being “simply unworkable†and dismissedas a cosmetic exercise to help cover the city's budget deficit by theMichigan Restaurant Association. The City of Detroit had claimed the proposal of a modest 2 percentfast-food tax - on top of the 6 percent state sales tax that alreadyexists on restaurant meals – is a vital step to reducing obesity.