California Healthy Beverages Summit

Petition to the FDA

CSPI is asking the FDA to determine a safe level of added sugars for beverages as part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce Americans' dangerously high sugar consumption. Ten health departments, 20 public health organizations, and 41 health professionals signed a letter in support of the petition. Find out more here >>

Pour One Out

We asked our fans to watch The Real Bears 'pour one out' and then make their own wildly creative videos pouring out sugary drinks. View the winning videos >>

From Supersize to Human-size:
Shrinking Sugar Drink Portions

New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas A. Farley and his colleagues from the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene participated in a webinar hosted by CSPI. In September 2012, the New York City Board of Health successfully passed a proposal to set a maximum size for sugary drinks of no more than 16 ounces. This webinar described the rationale for the policy; decisions that influenced the policy; challenges and implications faced by the department; and advice for how to reduce sugary drink consumption in communities. Listen to the thirty-minute webinar to learn how to reshape sugary drink portion size norms in your community.
Listen to webinar recording
View New York City DHMH’s presentation slides

National Soda Summit

Center for Science in the Public Interest hosted the first National Soda Summit on June 7 and 8, 2012. The conference brought together some of the country's most prominent nutrition authorities, educators, and public health officials, all aiming to improve public health by reducing consumption of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages. Speaker and Panelist Presentations

Soda Summit Preview

Surgeon General's Report on Sugar Drinks

More than 100 organizations and individuals recently sent a letter to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius, asking her to direct the Surgeon General to prepare a Report on the health impacts of sugar drinks and to issue a Call to Action to spur national efforts to reduce sugar drink consumption.

View CSPI's press release
View the letter and co-signers

Liquid Candy Tax Calculator

Americans consume huge quantities of soft drinks, which promote obesity and other health problems. Obesity alone costs $147 billion a year in medical expenditures, half of which are paid through Medicare and Medicaid. Taxing soft drinks is an effective approach for cash-strapped federal and state governments looking for ways to fund health care and disease-prevention programs.

To estimate how much revenue the federal government or your state could generate from an excise and/or sales tax on soft
drinks, enter sample tax rates into the Liquid Candy Tax Calculator. For technical information, see notes about the calculator.

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