If the soft drink industry thought its fight with health reformers ended in the San Francisco Bay Area last election season, a new bill in the California legislature may be a rude awakening, reviving the movement to cut the state’s sugary beverage consumption.
“I don’t think this issue is going to go away — not given the increasing concern with obesity, especially childhood obesity,” Larry Gerston, a political analyst and San Jose State University professor, told The Huffington Post.
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Given California’s social policy clout, Big Soda may need to prepare for a national battle.
“Somebody once wrote that states are great laboratories for democracy. California has certainly taken the lead in a number of areas,” including automobile emissions and anti-smoking laws, Gerston said. “It’s entirely possible that if [anti-soda legislation] gets through the state legislative process, it could be a great boost in the arm for those reformers.”
