Fat and sugar tax in Canada?

On the heels of groups like the Ontario Medical Association, Coalition Poids, the Alberta Policy Coalition and even the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal calling for fat and sugar taxes in Canada, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is launching a media and speaking tour this afternoon with Jens Klarskov, head of the Danish Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Klarskov will be travelling to Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver this week to speak with Canadians about his country’s failed fat and sugar tax experiment.

Denmark introduced a fat tax in October 2011. Thirteen months later in November 2012, the fat tax was repealed and further plans to introduce a sugar tax were scrapped. The tax was deemed ineffective as Danes would simply cross the border into neighbouring Germany to purchase food. The tax was also very complicated, burdensome to both businesses that had to re-calibrate their register system for thousands of different products and tax levels, and importers of food products where detailed ingredient information and analysis was needed. Tax authorities also found the tax extremely difficult to enforce.

The Denmark Chamber of Commerce was one of the leading voices opposing the introduction of the Danish “fat tax” and a strong proponent for its repeal.

Klarskov is in Canada until Feb. 22, 2013.