Denmark levies world's first fat tax

Prices of butter, milk products, pizzas, oils, meats and pre-cooked foods go up

AFP
Published: 00:00 October 2, 2011

Copenhagen: Denmark on Saturday became the first country in the world to impose a fat tax after a week in which consumers hoarded butter, pizza, meat and milk to avoid the immediate effects.

"We have had to stock up with tonnes of butter and margarine in order to be able to supply outlets," Soeren Joergensen of Arla Distribution said.

The new tax, designed by Denmark's outgoing government as a health issue to limit the population's intake of fatty foods, will add 16 crowns (Dh10.53) per kilogram of saturated fats in a product. This means an increase in the price of a pack of 250 grams of butter, for example, by 2.20 crowns to more than 18 crowns.

"It has been a chaotic week with a lot of empty shelves. People have been filling their freezers," Christian Jensen of an independent local Copenhagen supermarket said.

"But actually I don't think the tax will make that much difference. If people want to buy a cake, they will buy it. But right now they're saving money," he added.

The new tax will be levied on all products including saturated fats — from butter and milk to pizzas, oils, meats and pre-cooked foods — in a costing system that Denmark's Confederation of Industries (DI) says is a bureaucratic nightmare.

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sigh . . .

The world is going insane.