The president of Canada's soft-drink lobby probably thought he was being sarcastic in a letter to Toronto's government management committee, which endorsed a ban on sugary drinks at city-owned arenas and community centres Thursday.
"If the City feels so compelled to dramatically limit choices of consumers, where do you go next?" Justin Sherwood of Refreshments Canada wrote. "Ban butter, ice cream, salad dressings, chocolate bars, pizza, cookies, cream and sugar in coffee, as well as doughnuts consumed on City property?"
Well, yes, if at least one elected official has his way.
Scarborough Councillor Adrian Heaps moved a motion to expand healthy vending rules to all city-owned facilities, and asked for a report on extending those guidelines to all "food" dispensed at those buildings.
The motion lost on a 2-2 tie, but the councillor is free to try again when council votes on the issue next month.
"We have an epidemic," Mr. Heaps, armed with a bag of sugar as a prop, told the committee. "It's dramatic, but we do. Vending machines are just really the tip of the iceberg."
If approved at council, the new rules would limit vending machines at the city's 40 arenas and 134 community centres to stocking low-fat milk, soy drinks and 100-per-cent fruit and vegetable juice by 2014. Even bottled water will be forbidden; Toronto's ban on that product takes effect next year.
The new regime would be the most aggressive in Ontario, according to a city staff report, and the toughest in the country, according to Refreshments Canada.
The guidelines are part of a request-for-proposals for Toronto's next cold-drink vending contract. When the city sealed its deal with Pepsi Bottling Group five years ago, council voted to strengthen health requirements this time around. The Pepsi contract expires Oct. 31.
The next contract would increase the current minimum of 50-per-cent healthy drinks in vending machines to 75 per cent in two years and 100 per cent by November 2010 at all Parks, Forestry and Recreation department facilities except eight community-run areans, public golf courses and two city-owned ski hills.
Sixty-four snack bars at PFR buildings would be subject to the same rules after their contracts run out in 2012.
Councillor Doug Holyday is concerned Toronto could lose revenue if it takes a healthier approach. The Pepsi deal is expected to net the city $330,000 this year, $70,000 of which is a commission on sales. Pop and sports drink alone make up 71 per cent of sales.
"What effect is this going to have, on how many people and how much money is it going to cost us to have that little effect?" he said. His motion asking bidders to provide two revenue estimates -- one under the proposed new guidelines and another under existing rules -- was defeated as well. He said he'll try again at council.
"If somebody, a child particularly, has got the money given to them to buy a pop after the hockey game and they can't buy the pop, I think a goodly number of them will walk across the street to the confectionery store," Mr. Holyday said.
Councillor Mike Del Grande, a committee member known for his careful attention to the city's bottom line, said this is one instance where he supports losing money.
"Sometimes dollars and cents isn't the only end all and be all," he said. "We've got to start somewhere. This is a leadership position."