NRA Takes Aim at NYC Soda Ban

WASHINGTON — The National Restaurant Association, the New York State Restaurant Association and the American Beverage Association have formed a coalition to fight against the proposed New York City soda ban using an online petition, radio ads, movie trailers and a direct mail campaign.

The city’s soda ban, intended to reduce obesity, would limit sugary drinks sold at restaurants, food carts, delis, movie theaters and stadiums to 16 ounces or less. 

NRA’s Executive Vice President of Policy and Government Affairs Scot DeFife will testify at a July 24 New York Board of Heath meeting.

"This is not about soda," DeFife said in a press release.  "It is about an anti-competitive, discriminatory rule that limits restaurant operations and practices. It involves a variety of beverages and could even impact beverages that are exempt from the ban because the liability may force some operators to not sell anything in a cup larger than 16 ounces. It makes no sense from either a health standpoint or a commerce standpoint."

On Monday, the city published statements from filmmaker Spike Lee, Fast Food Nation author Eric Schlosser, celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, and several doctors and health professionals supporting the initiative.

Also on Monday, protestors held The Million Gulp March in front of City Hall that attracted a few dozen protestors, according to mass media reports.