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Denmark’s fat tax

3 October 2011

Denmark has become the first country in the world to introduce a tax on foods seen as being harmful to health. There will be an extra charge on items that contain more than 2.3% of a particular type of fat.

Reporter:

Tim Allman

A cooked breakfast of bacon and eggs

Foods that are high in saturated¹ fat are now subject to the tax

report:

When you think of Denmark, you think of pastries², butter and bacon. So perhaps a fat tax isn’t a bad idea, a levy³ that will be added to any foods that are high in saturated fat; milk, cheese and meat, for instance.

Make it more expensive, reduce consumption, improve health. Well, that is the theory.

Some shops have reported increased sales, people hoarding⁴ food to beat the price rise. The Danish Food and Drink Federation⁵ says some might just cross the border to do their shopping.

There is certainly some scepticism. Scientists insist that saturated fat is not the right target. Salt and sugar cause more health problems. But one study claims close to 4% of premature⁶ deaths in Denmark are caused by people consuming too much saturated fat. So hit shoppers in the pocket, not the waistband.

Tim Allman, BBC News

1 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液

2 pastries   

n.面粉制的糕点

参考例句：

• He gave a dry laugh, then sat down and started on the pastries. 杜新箨说着干笑一声，坐下去就吃点心。 来自子夜部分
• Mike: So many! I like Xijiang raisins, beef jerky, and local pastries. 麦克：太多了。我最喜欢吃新疆葡萄干、牛肉干和风味点心。

3 levy   

n.征收税或其他款项，征收额

参考例句：

• They levy a tax on him.他们向他征税。
• A direct food levy was imposed by the local government.地方政府征收了食品税。

4 hoarding   

n.贮藏；积蓄；临时围墙；囤积v.积蓄并储藏（某物）( hoard的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• After the war, they were shot for hoarding. 战后他们因囤积而被枪决。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Actually he had two unused ones which he was hoarding up. 其实他还藏了两片没有用呢。 来自英汉文学

5 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

6 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。