[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Pages 24921-24922]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           HEALTH CARE REFORM

  Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I rise for two purposes. First, there is 
a huge argument in America with regard to health care, and we all know 
one of the main contributing factors to the health difficulties of all 
Americans is the subject of obesity. There are many opinions about ways 
to address it, but the most comprehensive way to address it is to be 
intellectually honest in addressing it.
  The President of the Coca-Cola Company was published in an October 8 
Wall Street Journal article, and it is a brilliant article on obesity, 
weight, sugar content, and soft drinks. I commend it to the Senate for 
their study.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record 
the full article.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

              [From the Wall Street Journal, Oct. 8, 2009]

                      Coke Didn't Make America Fat

                            (By Muhtar Kent)

       Obesity is a complex issue, and addressing it is important 
     for all Americans. We at the Coca-Cola company are committed 
     to working with government and health organizations to 
     implement effective solutions to address this problem.
       But a number of public-health advocates have already come 
     up with what they think is the solution: heavy taxes on some 
     routine foods and beverages that they have decided are high 
     in calories. The taxes, the advocates acknowledge are 
     intended to limit consumption of targeted foods and help you 
     to accept the diet that they have determined is best.
       In cities and states across America--and even at the 
     federal level--this idea is getting increased attention 
     despite its regressive nature and inherent illogic.
       While it is true that since the 1970s Americans have 
     increased their average caloric intake by 12%, they also have 
     become more sedentary. According to the National Center for 
     Health Statistics 2008 Chartbook, 39% of adults in the U.S. 
     are not engaging in leisure physical activity. The Centers 
     for Disease Control and Prevention has found that 60% of 
     Americans are not regularly active and 25% of Americans are 
     not active at all. The average American spends the equivalent 
     of 60 days a year in front of a television, according to a 
     2008 A.C. Nielsen study. This same research data show that 
     the average time spent playing video games in the U.S. went 
     up by 25% during the last four years.
       If we're genuinely interested in curbing obesity, we need 
     to take a hard look in the mirror and acknowledge that it's 
     not just about calories in. It's also about calories out.
       Our industry has become an easy target in this debate. 
     Sugar-sweetened beverages have been singled out for 
     demonization in spite of the fact that soft drinks, energy 
     drinks, sports drinks and sweetened bottled water combined 
     contribute 5.5% of the calories in the average American diet, 
     according to the National Cancer Institute. It's difficult to 
     understand why the beverages we and others provide are being 
     targeted as the primary cause of weight gain when 94.5% of 
     calorie intake comes from other foods and beverages.
       Those pushing for this tax lack some essential facts, not 
     to mention some basic common sense. Over the past 20 years, 
     the average caloric content of soft drinks has dropped by 
     nearly 25%. This is due in large part to a determined focus 
     by our company and others on the diet/light category with 
     brands like Diet Coke, Coca-Cola Zero and Powerade Zero. Even 
     soft drinks with sugar, like Coca-Cola, contain no more 
     calories (140

[[Page 24922]]

     calories in a can) than common snacks, breakfast foods and 
     most desserts served up daily in millions of American homes. 
     And while obesity rates have skyrocketed, sales of regular 
     soft drinks decreased by nearly 10% from 2000 to 2008, 
     according to the industry publication Beverage Digest.
       So where are all of the extra calories in the American diet 
     coming from? Research from the United States Department of 
     Agriculture shows that added sugars, as a percentage of total 
     daily available calories, have declined 11% since 1970. Yet 
     the percent of calories from added fats and flour/cereal 
     products has increased 35% and 13%, respectively, during that 
     same time period.
       Will a soft drink tax change behavior? Two states currently 
     have a tax on sodas--West Virginia and Arkansas--and they are 
     among the states with the highest rates of obesity in the 
     nation.
       Obesity is a serious problem. We know that. And we agree 
     that Americans need to be more active and take greater 
     responsibility for their diets. But are soft drinks the 
     cause? I would submit to you that they are no more so than 
     some other products--and a lot less than many, many others.
       As a leader in our industry, we have a role to play in 
     solving this issue. Globally, we have led the industry for 
     nearly 30 years with innovations across the diet and light 
     beverage categories. Today, more than 25% of our global 
     beverage portfolio is comprised of low- or no-calorie 
     beverages.
       Policy makers should stop spending their valuable time 
     demonizing an industry that directly employs more than 
     220,000 people in the U.S., and through supporting 
     industries, an additional three million. Instead, business 
     and government should come together to help encourage greater 
     physical activity and sensible dieting, while allowing 
     Americans to enjoy the simple pleasure of a Coca-Cola.

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