23 Jun Jamie Oliver to charge 10p extra for fizzy drinks in Nottingham restaurant
Article from Nottingham Post: Posted 22nd June 2015
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has slapped a ‘sugar tax’ on all sweet drinks served in his restaurants.
The 40-year-old will charge 10p extra for every drink containing added sugar to his eateries across the country – including Jamie’s Italian, which has been in Nottingham’s Low Pavement since 2011.
The father-of-four, who does not allow any fizzy or sugary drinks in his own home, will use the money raised to fund better education over healthy eating.
Oliver, who has long campaigned for healthy food, says he has imposed the tax to send a message to the government to take urgent action on childhood obesity.
He told the Sunday Times: “I truly believe that by joining together on this issue, we not only send a powerful and strong message to government but we also have the potential to make a long lasting legacy that could ripple across the world.
“I’ve seen first-hand the heart-breaking effects that poor diet and too much sugar is having on our children’s health and futures.
“Soft drinks are the biggest single source of sugar among school-age kids and teenagers and so we have to start here.”
Money from the levy will be put into a fund run by the charity Sustain to support children’s health food initiatives across Britain.
Oliver believes the charge will raise about £80,000 in its first year.
Earlier this month, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said Mr Cameron did not ‘believe that the right approach is to put sugar taxes on hard-working people to increase the weight and cost of their shopping baskets’.
Do you agree with Jamie Oliver? Should we pay more for fizzy and sugary drinks?
Interested in eating healthily?