Higher taxes on fat, candy and tobacco

Today I am a bit proud of being Danish: The government and their support party, The Danish People's party (Dansk Folkeparti) just agreed on a new tax deal for 2010 and 2011, where taxes on fatty foods, candy and tobacco will be raised even higher that they already are in order to encourage the population to avoid stuffing their bodies with unhealthy trash food and tobacco. American could REALLY learn from that!

After having lived in the US for just over a year, I still get angry when I compare the price of a non-organic apple with, say, a roll of Pringle's chips. Yep, you guessed right. When Pringle's are for sale - and that's very often - they cost the same as an apple that has been sprayed with pesticides and other chemicals that if they don't outright alter our bodies in weird ways, at least they are not known to do any good to us.

It's almost worse when I look at simple vegetables that are cheap in Denmark: cucumber, squash/zucchini, eggplant, fennel (at least in Netto you get a good big one for cheap), green and red cabbage, red beets, celery roots, frozen peas and frozen long green beans. All these cost between 1 and two dollars a piece (red beets about 2 dollars for a pound). Even asparagus are cheaper in Denmark, and that's not saying a lot! I can't get into my head why a fennel over here must cost $4!!! Or why an artichoke, even in season, must cost $4-5!! When they are in season in DK, you can get one for less than $2. Out of season when they are less fresh and smaller, you'd have to pay around $3. it's hard to say what makes me the most mad since there are so many competitors, but the winner will have to be the celery root: a tiny half withered head for almost $6!! Really? I mean, REALLY!?!? In Denmark they will throw it at you for $1.

I almost don't care how cheap or expensive all the unhealthy fat and sugar heavy food products in American super markets are, but at least the healthy, non-produced (and therefore logically cheap to produce!) food should be cheap!! It HAS to be more expensive to produce a roll of Pringle's chips than to pick an apple! The same goes for all other types of veg. It seems especially striking that apples should be so expensive here, since Washington State allegedly is a big apple producer?!

On the other hand, I wish it wasn't legal for producers of the immensely sugary so-called breakfast products from companies like Kellogs and others to make ads where they claim that their products are HEALTHY?!?! "Lower your colestorol", "lose weight with these [sugar-bomb] yoghurts" (Danone). In France where Danone is from, the parents treat it like a DESSERT, NOT breakfast!! If anything, they eat the "naturel" yoghurt which has no sugar, although it's still having some milk fat in it which is not good for your veines and your heart. But the chalk is great for your bones.

This country needs a food revolution. It would make the farmers richer, which I don't have a problem with, and the producers of unhealthy food products poorer (for which I will cry dry tears), but most importantly: America will be healthier and need less unhealthy and expensive medicine!!!! (and operations). THAT will be the very best investment an American leader can make in his/her country at any time! This is an invitation to you, Obama!

See more in Danish:
(http://www.dr.dk/Nyheder/Politik/2009/03/01/152448.htm#)
(http://www.dr.dk/Sundhed/dinsundhed/Sundmad/Artikler/2009/0115132942.htm)