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  3. " Sugar, alcohol and tobacco," economist Adam Smith once wrote, " are commod

" Sugar, alcohol and tobacco," economist Adam Smith once wrote, " are commod

游客2024-01-24  32
问题     " Sugar, alcohol and tobacco," economist Adam Smith once wrote, " are commodities which are nowhere necessaries of life, which have become objects of almost universal consumption, and which are, therefore, extremely popular subjects of taxation. "
    Two and a half centuries on, most countries impose some sort of tax on alcohol and tobacco. With surging obesity levels putting increasing strain on public health systems, governments around the world have begun to toy with the idea of taxing sugar as well.
    Whether such taxes work is a matter of debate. A preliminary review of Mexico’s taxation found a fall in purchases of taxed drinks as well as a rise in sales of untaxed and healthier drinks. By contrast, a Danish tax on foods high in fats was abandoned a year after its introduction, amid claims that consumers were avoiding it by crossing the border to Germany to satisfy their desire for cheaper, fattier fare.
    The food industry has, in general, been firmly opposed to such direct government action. Nonetheless, the renewed focus on waistlines means that industry groups are under pressure to demonstrate their products are healthy as well as tasty.
    Over the past three decades, the industry has made some efforts to improve the quality of its offerings. For example, some drink manufacturers have cut the amount of sugar in their beverages.
Many of the reductions over the past 30 years have been achieved either by reducing the amount of sugar, salt or fat in a product, or by finding an alternative ingredient. More recently, however, some companies have been investing money in a more ambitious undertaking: learning how to adjust the fundamental make-up of the food they sell. For example, having salt on the outside, but none on the inside, reduces the salt content without changing the taste.
    While reformulating recipes(配方)is one way to improve public health, it should be part of a multi-sided approach. The key is to remember that there is not just one solution. To deal with obesity, a mixture of approaches—including reformulation, taxation and adjusting portion sizes—will be needed. There is no silver bullet. [br] Why have many countries started to consider taxing sugar?
选项 A、They are under growing pressure to balance their national budgets.
B、They find it ever harder to cope with sugar-induced health problems.
C、The practice of taxing alcohol and tobacco has proved both popular and profitable.
D、The sugar industry is overtaking alcohol and tobacco business in generating profits.
答案 B
解析 事实细节题。第二段提到，许多政府开始考虑征收糖税。第二句中With引出的是原因状语，表明征收糖税的原因在于激增的肥胖水平给公共卫生系统带来巨大的压力。B)“他们觉得应对由糖引起的健康问题越来越困难”符合原文提到的原因，故本题答案为B)。
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