It was revealed to Irish economists at the weekend that if a new “fat tax” was introduced it could help to generate €188m per year for the exchequer. Now that sounds finger lickin’ good.
There just never seems to be enough cash floating about. However, if a new tax for saturated fat, added sugar and salt was brought in, a whopping €188m could be generated for the exchequer. The “fat tax” idea comes from a new study by Maria Murray of Trinity College Dublin and Micheál Collins of the Nevin Economic Research Institute.
At the weekend, the authors of the study met with leading Irish economists including economists attached to government departments. They stated that the overall effect on the consumer would be quite small but that it might make food manufacturers think twice about how much extra fat and sugar they add to their food – not to mention salt.
So how much would it actually cost you every week? Well, a levy on saturated fat would see you paying an extra 93c per week on your whole shop, another €1.10 for added sugar and a levy on extra salt would only see you paying an extra 15c.
Sounds good to us.
