Ban Calories, Not Ounces, to Regulate Sugary Beverages

Sept. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Call me a traitor to my class, oran honest man. Unlike most people in the beverage industry, I’min favor of taxes or even a ban on supersweet drinks. But theproposed regulation in New York isn’t the answer.

I fully agree with Mayor Michael Bloomberg (also thefounder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent companyof Bloomberg News) that most drinks are too sweet and that weshould do something about this. Indeed, I have. Fourteen yearsago, I started Honest Tea Inc. with one of my students. The ideawas to make tea that tastes like tea, not liquid candy. Thisyear, the company will sell 100 million bottles of tea, ades andkids’ pouches, all with fewer than 100 calories a package.